Acer sent the PR, and it seemed like a reasonable enough topic to discuss so I did so. This is Pipeline, and as I mention at the end, "we expect we'll see quite a few similar laptops in the coming weeks." The only paychecks I get right now are from AnandTech, and I get those for reporting and writing, so expect to see more Pipeline stories going forward.
Acer's press release actually says, "Today Acer is announcing a new M5 notebook available exclusively at Best Buy." Figure if it's only available there, it's worth noting -- because if you don't have access to a Best Buy, you probably don't care much about the products sold there. :-)
Any news on when AT will start letting us up/down vote comments? I think it'd be cool because then readers would get to see the more meaningful discussions on the first page. It would surely beat having to wade through opinionated riff raff to talk about technology.
"The only paychecks I get right now are from AnandTech, and I get those for reporting and writing, so expect to see more Pipeline stories going forward."
I actually like announcements like this. I like knowing when a new laptop becomes available and seeing how it stacks up compared other options. I don't know of any other places that offer that coverage.
Acer also has the V5-122P available for $430 with a Temash APU (the A6-1450) and a 1366x768 (it is a 11" laptop) IPS touch screen... Much more attractive for most people than this because of the lower price and IPS. In my time with it (we bought it for my mom) Temash seems to be good enough for any basic browsing and 1080p video. But this is really cheap for Haswell... Shame that there are only 6 hours of battery life, since to me that's haswell's biggest draw!
I agree about the IPS screen. They could easily fit a larger capacity battery into this model without making it too much heavier/thicker, so I'm hoping they actually will for other models. I'd like a new Haswell laptop, but it doesn't seem there are enough models out there quite yet that would fit my exact needs and budget.
You have some good points. My only 2 hopes are that A) this is a baseline for i5 Haswell touchscreen laptops with 1080p+IPS+SSD cache+GT3 won't be more than $200 more... The 4200U ties one of the i3s as the cheapest mobile Haswell chip atm.
Upgrading to a 28w Haswell would likely tack on $80 at retail, another $30 for IPS ($60 for 1080p), $30 for SSD cached HD, $20 for better network card, and $40 for a better battery. iow, with tax a good Haswell touchscreen laptop will probably come to about $1000. Refurbed IVBs at $600 are starting to look pretty good.
I guess that's what happens when you do budget right for long enough; people are willing to trust you further up the chain when it's time to purchase there. My Aspire 1810T has been good enough to me that I would definitely consider Acer if/when they do come out with a Haswell ULV Ultrabook. Moreso than HP considering how many times I've been burned by them.
Acer's S7-392 is available on Amazon and the Dell XPS 12 has Haswell now.
Not sure if these count as "ultrabooks" but the following do have ULV Haswell options that you could order today: HP ProBook 430 G1 Dell Inspiron 15R Touch Toshiba Satellite P50-AST2NX1 Toshiba Satellite P55t-A5202
Some others that I have seen that are on their way that have Haswell ULVs Acer V5-573G-9491 Acer V7-582P-6673 HP TouchSmart 14-k000 series
It's sad that we get laptops with crappier screens than tablets because MS and Intel won't stop pricing the crap out of their parts due to them living in the 90's.
I think you're not grasping the content of his message. MS charges a pretty fat fee for Windows -- I don't know how much OEMs pay exactly, but I suspect it's north of $50. Intel meanwhile sells their Core i3/i5 CPUs starting at around $150, and with a really sweet OEM deal they might get them for $100-$125 I suspect, but you have to tack on another $30-$50 for the Intel chipset as well. Combined then we're looking at roughly $250 for the CPU, chipset, and OS. Compare that to an ARM-based Android tablet where the OS is free and the SoC is about $20-$30, and you can see how tablets are able to spend more of the total BoM on the display. Then again, tablets often sell for less than $400 and we're looking at $700 for a basic touchscreen laptop, though I haven't accounted for storage, RAM, cooling, keyboard, etc. yet....
Once the first laptops with built-in Leap Motion system will soon become available, all this smudgy display touchy nonsense will already be dead, before it really got alive.
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jasperjones - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
is best buy paying you for this?JarredWalton - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
Acer sent the PR, and it seemed like a reasonable enough topic to discuss so I did so. This is Pipeline, and as I mention at the end, "we expect we'll see quite a few similar laptops in the coming weeks." The only paychecks I get right now are from AnandTech, and I get those for reporting and writing, so expect to see more Pipeline stories going forward.Zandros - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
I think it is a reasonable topic. The headline did seem a bit off to me, though.I mean, sure, if you become interested it's good to know where it's available, but is the headline the place?
JarredWalton - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
Acer's press release actually says, "Today Acer is announcing a new M5 notebook available exclusively at Best Buy." Figure if it's only available there, it's worth noting -- because if you don't have access to a Best Buy, you probably don't care much about the products sold there. :-)caleblloyd - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
Any news on when AT will start letting us up/down vote comments? I think it'd be cool because then readers would get to see the more meaningful discussions on the first page. It would surely beat having to wade through opinionated riff raff to talk about technology.Ortanon - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
"The only paychecks I get right now are from AnandTech, and I get those for reporting and writing, so expect to see more Pipeline stories going forward."ROFL! Awesome response.
purerice - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
If I were Best Buy and I paid for this, I would want my money back.Souzetsu - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
I actually like announcements like this. I like knowing when a new laptop becomes available and seeing how it stacks up compared other options. I don't know of any other places that offer that coverage.karasaj - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
Acer also has the V5-122P available for $430 with a Temash APU (the A6-1450) and a 1366x768 (it is a 11" laptop) IPS touch screen... Much more attractive for most people than this because of the lower price and IPS. In my time with it (we bought it for my mom) Temash seems to be good enough for any basic browsing and 1080p video. But this is really cheap for Haswell... Shame that there are only 6 hours of battery life, since to me that's haswell's biggest draw!Crono - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
I agree about the IPS screen. They could easily fit a larger capacity battery into this model without making it too much heavier/thicker, so I'm hoping they actually will for other models. I'd like a new Haswell laptop, but it doesn't seem there are enough models out there quite yet that would fit my exact needs and budget.JarredWalton - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
I could be wrong -- maybe it's actually not TN. I've asked and am waiting a response, but the cynic in me is expecting TN. I'll update if necessary.purerice - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
You have some good points. My only 2 hopes are that A) this is a baseline for i5 Haswell touchscreen laptops with 1080p+IPS+SSD cache+GT3 won't be more than $200 more...The 4200U ties one of the i3s as the cheapest mobile Haswell chip atm.
Upgrading to a 28w Haswell would likely tack on $80 at retail, another $30 for IPS ($60 for 1080p), $30 for SSD cached HD, $20 for better network card, and $40 for a better battery. iow, with tax a good Haswell touchscreen laptop will probably come to about $1000. Refurbed IVBs at $600 are starting to look pretty good.
Crono - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
Acer is quietly moving from being a budget brand to being a midrange and, dare I say, a (lower tier) premium brand.otherwise - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
I guess that's what happens when you do budget right for long enough; people are willing to trust you further up the chain when it's time to purchase there. My Aspire 1810T has been good enough to me that I would definitely consider Acer if/when they do come out with a Haswell ULV Ultrabook. Moreso than HP considering how many times I've been burned by them.DigitalFreak - Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - link
Where are all the Haswell "ultrabooks"? The only ones on Newegg are the Sony Vaio.stratoknight - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
Acer's S7-392 is available on Amazon and the Dell XPS 12 has Haswell now.Not sure if these count as "ultrabooks" but the following do have ULV Haswell options that you could order today:
HP ProBook 430 G1
Dell Inspiron 15R Touch
Toshiba Satellite P50-AST2NX1
Toshiba Satellite P55t-A5202
Some others that I have seen that are on their way that have Haswell ULVs
Acer V5-573G-9491
Acer V7-582P-6673
HP TouchSmart 14-k000 series
HisDivineOrder - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
It's sad that we get laptops with crappier screens than tablets because MS and Intel won't stop pricing the crap out of their parts due to them living in the 90's.jimbo2779 - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
Yeah its MS and/or Intel's fault a computer manufacturer decides to put low quality screens in their machines!Are you simple?
JarredWalton - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
I think you're not grasping the content of his message. MS charges a pretty fat fee for Windows -- I don't know how much OEMs pay exactly, but I suspect it's north of $50. Intel meanwhile sells their Core i3/i5 CPUs starting at around $150, and with a really sweet OEM deal they might get them for $100-$125 I suspect, but you have to tack on another $30-$50 for the Intel chipset as well. Combined then we're looking at roughly $250 for the CPU, chipset, and OS. Compare that to an ARM-based Android tablet where the OS is free and the SoC is about $20-$30, and you can see how tablets are able to spend more of the total BoM on the display. Then again, tablets often sell for less than $400 and we're looking at $700 for a basic touchscreen laptop, though I haven't accounted for storage, RAM, cooling, keyboard, etc. yet....turing-test - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
I am loath to tell you that you should have said "loathe".Kill16by9TN - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
Once the first laptops with built-in Leap Motion system will soon become available, all this smudgy display touchy nonsense will already be dead, before it really got alive.