When the netbooks appeared in the market, ultra-portable lovers were excited to get a combination of lightweight portability and full functionality of a computer. As the time passed, small screen sizes of netbooks began to create difficulty for some users. Ultimately, the need of an ultra portable with an adequate display size and full functionality of a computer emerged. To come up to the users’ requirements and anticipation, a new trend in netbooks came into sight, with slightly larger screen but light-weightiness. One such example is Acer’s Aspire One 531 netbook.

Specs:

• Processor: Intel Atom
• Processor’s speed: 1600 Mhz
• Operating System: Windows XP Home
• Display Size: 10.1″ 1024 X 600
• Hard disk: 160 GB
• Weight: 992g
• Size: 254/183/28 mm
• Physical interfaces: Ethernet 10/100, Line-out / Headphone, MIC-in, Multi-format card reader, USB2.0 (x3), VGA
• Wireless Interfaces: 802.11b/g, BT2.0, Tri-Band UMTS/HSDPA
• Additional specs: WebCam 0.3mp
• Price range: £349 (subject to variation according to time and location)

Features:

First of all, let us talk about the design. For enhanced portability along with wide screen, there was a need of cutting down the excess material from every curve and straight lines of the machine. This lappie has been trimmed down from every possible angle to give it extra portability. Resulting notebook possesses a larger screen than the predecessor, and is as lightweight as a netbook should be.

Image by liliputing

The ancestor Aspire One had few inadequacies, which have been taken care of while designing 531. The screen is brighter and more suitable for watching movies because of its glossy polished surface. Also, the size has been significantly enhanced while keeping the light-weight a constant feature.

Heat factor! The Intel Atom processing unit is nice enough to produce less heat and thus, lower fan noise. A slight increase in the processor’s running speed has also been noticed from the preceding one. One can notice that the processing time has visibly improved, and the newer notebook is much quicker and faster. Though it is a netbook, you can rely upon it for Word documenting, web browsing, net surfing, emailing etc. Nevertheless, you must not forget that it isn’t a specialist hi-fi laptop with multiple cores and high multi-tasking or gaming abilities; do not expect it to edit your high definition videos.

Redesigned trackpad is another pleasant surprise. At last, the mouse buttons are placed precisely where they must have been present. The keyboard is 89% of full size; a great feature certainly. Arrow keys are still constricted, though.

Connectivity is at a nice level with Aspire 531; there are three USB ports, a VGA output, an Ethernet port, a memory card reader slot and another card reader only for SD cards. Larger battery increases the bulk and weight of this slim portable.

Pros:

• Lightweight – ultra-portable
• Nice bigger screen
• Improved trackpad
• 3G connectivity
• Great keyboard size

Cons:

• Poor battery life
• Few hitches in keyboard keys

Final Words:

This laptop is going to give a new turn to the netbook area of computer market. With enhanced portability and same lightweight but bigger screen size, this netbook is surely going to capture many hearts.

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