Acer R7 Review: Something Different
by Jarred Walton on August 15, 2013 12:45 AM ESTWe’re definitely late to the party when it comes to reviewing the Aspire R7, but it’s still an interesting design and we thought it was at least worth a look before we move on. And moving on we are: part of the reason why I wanted to look at the Aspire R7 is that we’ve also got the Aspire V7 in hand, and the review is nearly finished. The Aspire V7 is a far more traditional design, in that there’s no Ezel hinge and the keyboard and touchpad are in the usual places. The general aesthetic and industrial design however is very similar to the Aspire R7. What’s particularly impressive is that the V7 manages to pack more performance into a smaller chassis. But I’m getting ahead of myself; let’s first wrap up the review of the R7.
.jpg)
Acer's V7: Smaller and faster, and no Ezel hinge
I think over the last year we’ve definitely seen Acer begin to turn over a new leaf. Yes, we’ll still see budget-oriented value offerings out of the company, and the Acer Chromebook continues to be one of the best-selling laptops around – mostly because of its incredibly low price. However, the industrial design and willingness to take some risks with both the S7 and R7 give us renewed hope for the future. A continued focus on high quality displays and improved build quality coupled with a more traditional design is pretty much all we want. (And as we’ll see in the next few days, the Aspire V7 delivers exactly that.)
The other part of my conclusion is that I’m becoming increasingly convinced that Windows 8 is a serious misstep for Microsoft. I suppose we could say some of what they’ve done was almost required in order to try and compete in an increasingly crowded market, but when I look at the simplicity offered by Android and iOS and then look at the Jekyll and Hyde interface from Windows 8, I just don’t see this ending well. I feel that Windows RT needs to be its own platform, and forget about backwards compatibility. Meanwhile, Windows 8 takes the Windows RT interface and forces that on many desktop and notebook users that don’t want it, and while it’s backwards compatible with existing Windows applications, most existing Windows applications don’t play well with a touchscreen.
The good news is that with Windows 8 on desktops and notebooks, all I have to do is disable the Start Screen and ignore touchscreen interfaces and I get a similar experience overall to Windows 7, typically with faster boot times. And even if you do open or use a Metro app on occasion, it's not too difficult to do so with a mouse or touchpad (though it might be less than optimal). Going the other way isn't so easy, though, as desktop apps often don't work well at all without a mouse or touchpad. This is the problem that the Acer R7 faces, and unless/until Microsoft can fix things, at least personally I find the touchscreen to be mostly a gimmick that I don’t need – just like most of the Windows 8 apps. At least with the R7, the gigantic hybrid tablet functionality provides a use case for Windows 8 apps on a notebook, and you can continue to use the keyboard and touchpad for desktop apps.
If you’ve always wanted a 15.6-inch convertible tablet thingy, the Acer Aspire R7 might be exactly what you need. I can’t immediately think of any other competing systems, though perhaps I just haven’t looked hard enough. It’s a combination laptop/tablet/all-in-one, depending on how you want to use it, and if you’re willing to give it a bit of a chance it can function in any of those ways reasonably well. There are definitely better tablets, better laptops, and better all-in-ones, but the R7 is pretty much unique in the marketplace right now. I’d still say it’s not for me, even though I’ve enjoyed poking around at it off and on over the past month and a half, but the only real failures are the companies that refuse to innovate. I’ll definitely keep an eye on Acer to see what other interesting ideas they have to offer in the coming years.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
113 Comments
View All Comments
ZeDestructor - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
It does indeed. And so far, I haven't seen a single ultrabook with VGA (DIE VGA, DIE, TOGETHER WITH YOUR HATEFUL BROTHER, DVI!)Even projectors have moved on to miniDP/HDMI these days, with VGA firmly legacy, but of course, cheapskate business will try to save as usual, so you'll need an adapter for their 800x600 projector....
JarredWalton - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
I understand it might look like DisplayPort, but it's not. Here's a link to the data sheet, which I admit isn't as easy to find on Acer's site as you might expect:http://us.acer.com/ac/en/US/content/model-datashee...
Note how it says, "VGA: Yes".
jaydee - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
I did actually go to the spec sheet on Acer's site before posting, but I still think it's incorrect. Compare the following images:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thum...
http://www.uapple.com.ua/wp-content/uploads/2010/0...
If it were mini-VGA, you should see the 7 individual pins in the bottom of the port, no?
JarredWalton - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
There is no standard for mini-VGA -- it's a proprietary thing, so how you implement is up to you. I think there might even be a mini-VGA to VGA cable with the R7.jaydee - Friday, August 16, 2013 - link
After some googling, that port is actually called the "Acer Converter Port", and with proprietary cables, you can connect VGA, USB or ethernet to it. According to Acer's website, it is the exact same physical port as mini-DP. Hella-confusing if you ask me.http://acer.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/3...
ZeDestructor - Friday, August 16, 2013 - link
Just... why.... Why not just use Thunderbolt?JarredWalton - Friday, August 16, 2013 - link
From the page you linked:Can I connect my Aspire R7 series to a LAN or VGA port?
To connect to a LAN or connect to a VGA monitor, you first have to connect the Acer Converter cable to the Acer Converter port on your computer. The Acer converter cable is a one-to-three cable that provides an Ethernet port, VGA port and an additional USB port.
Can I connect a DisplayPort monitor to the Acer Converter Port?
The Acer Converter Port uses the same physical port as a Mini DisplayPort, but is designed to connect to an Acer proprietary cable. If you connect a DisplayPort monitor, Acer cannot guarantee the functionality of the monitor. No damage should occur to either monitor or notebook by connecting a Mini DisplayPort cable."
Ummm... so is it a DisplayPort connector, or is it just the same shape? Because if it's not DisplayPort it won't work at all, but if it is then it should always work. And of course, Thunderbolt also uses the same style of connector, right? I don't immediately see any Thunderbolt chips in the internal images, but perhaps the chip is on the other side of the motherboard. I'm guessing more likely is that it's not TB or DP but something altogether different.
ananduser - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
I don't like this machine Jarred, not one bit. I'll also agree with you that Win8 is a yin/yang affair for the moment; personally I'll give MS one more year before I judge Metro on a desktop - waiting for one more iteration of Win8 devices with the expected CPU improvements in the industry. Until then, ClassicStart only.Now Jarred, how about reviewing some Vaios, the S7(preferably the Euro version or both). I've yet to read a review on a Vaio(Pro and Duo) that actually dives into the Triluminous/Quantum Dot tech Sony has developed. Only Anandtech™ can do that.
ZeDestructor - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
Anandtech hasn't reviewed any Sony devices for the past year at least... I'm still waiting for an Xperia Z review myself (hint, hint Brian Klug!)djc208 - Friday, August 16, 2013 - link
True, but that's kind of like saying Ferrari isn't as good as Honda because how many people own Ferraris.The Surface Pro is a laptop without the keyboard, and priced similarly. Its not really competition for iPads and Android tablets at half the price and functionality. The surface RT looses the benfits of Windows 8, without the apps and ecosystem of either iOS or Android for the same or more money. Besides the confusion over what RT can and cannot do. And the Vivo was cheap crap that was still too expensive for what you got.
I don't think Windows 8 is perfect, nor do I expect 8.1 to fix everything, but Microsoft has most of the pieces to bring people back to Windows devices, and as usual they just can't execute.