Well, there ya go. Acer = Gateway = eMachines = Celeron-based poo piles. I guess it makes sense to keep all the stuff in one pile.
Thanks for the info. Yuk.
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What do you think of Acer's quality?
- Thread starter M. Malone
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Well, there ya go. Acer = Gateway = eMachines = Celeron-based poo piles. I guess it makes sense to keep all the stuff in one pile.
Thanks for the info. Yuk.
I've had two Acer laptops. Both of them have been absolute disasters, so much that I wouldn't touch anything made by Acer ever again. My sister's is still working, surprisingly, so I guess they can't all be bad, but I've had two out of two duds.
My other laptop was an Asus, which are in the same relatively cheap band, but that's survived for over two years (the Acers didn't last one). It's got cracks in the plastic, the hinge is broken, and it's making funny sounds now, but on the plus side at least it still works.
I'm still not sure if I'm going to be sticking with OSX - it's taking quite a bit of time to get used to for someone who's spent a huge chunk of their life using Windows - but even if I switch back to Windows 7 as my primary OS, I'll be glad to have bought the Mac.
My other laptop was an Asus, which are in the same relatively cheap band, but that's survived for over two years (the Acers didn't last one). It's got cracks in the plastic, the hinge is broken, and it's making funny sounds now, but on the plus side at least it still works.
Can't say I agree with that. Yeah, the main advantage for many is running OSX, but it's not like that's the only advantage. For one thing, if you have a problem with most Windows laptops you're left at the mercy of some outsourced callcentre or a two month wait for some service from a middle of nowhere service facility that may or may not fix it - you don't have the option of just wandering into an Apple Retail store and getting the problem looked at. Lenovo, being a business manufacturer, seem to be the only Windows brand that compare in service options, and unless you're content with an Intel GMA graphics card they're not really any cheaper, here at least.
I'm still not sure if I'm going to be sticking with OSX - it's taking quite a bit of time to get used to for someone who's spent a huge chunk of their life using Windows - but even if I switch back to Windows 7 as my primary OS, I'll be glad to have bought the Mac.
I have an Acer Aspire that is nearly four years old and I still think it is great. They are ugly looking but if you don't give a hoot then they are a great deal. The casing has withstood a lot of abuse. You feel like you can toss it about some.
What I like the best though is that the BIOS is much more customizable than most other manufacturers. If only some company would unlock the BIOS on a laptop like you get with home built desktops.
If the casing is still rugged I would go for one otherwise stick with another maker I suppose as most charge very close prices now. Acer's used to be much cheaper to the comparable laptops from other manufacturers.
What I like the best though is that the BIOS is much more customizable than most other manufacturers. If only some company would unlock the BIOS on a laptop like you get with home built desktops.
If the casing is still rugged I would go for one otherwise stick with another maker I suppose as most charge very close prices now. Acer's used to be much cheaper to the comparable laptops from other manufacturers.
Acer along with a few other brand X makers make basic PC's that are then rebranded by the big computer makers. Apple does business with Quanta, can't remember the exact name. they make a basic PC which they sell to HP/Dell/Apple and then it's customized and branded.
A few years ago the chinese makers realized they can sell computers themselves since Dell/HP screwed up the decent support they had in the 1990's to script reading robots. The strategy of Acer, Asus and the others is to sell a basic cheapo computer at low margins since they haven't sold their souls to wall street. Kind of like the brand X TV's from a few years ago.
I've had experience with almost every major PC brand and here are my thoughts.
Dell - like them. i have a 5 year old Inspiron laptop i gave my in laws that still works great. it's almost 10 pounds, but built like a tank and very tough. my mom has the same one except Intel graphics and no upgrades. 2GB of RAM and Vista runs great on it. Next time she visits i'm going to install Windows 7 on it. $700 and so far she's had it for 4-5 years and will probably keep it for a few more. I've also had a few Dell PC's from the late 1990's that are still running. In laws just junked one a few weeks ago since it maxes out at 512MB RAM.
HP - hate them. i have a $1500 HP business laptop that is the size of a MBP and i think it's junk. screen broke once, they keyboard is flaky and HP PC support sucks. Server support is still OK.
Acer/Gateway/Emachines - cheap but nice. i have some family who's emachines PC finally gave out after years of use. i worked on it a few months ago and no complaints. Gateway I hate.
Lenovo - they bought IBM's PC business a few years ago. Wife has a laptop from them and i like it. we have them at work as well. good build quality but pricey
Sony - hate them. overpriced junk
Apple - probably the only warranty i completely trust. The pricing is competitive right after a refresh, but after a few months a Dell with the same specs is cheaper until the next refresh. Great resale value.
For cheap buy a Dell or one of the brand X makers. Dell Mini you can even load OS X with no problems. Just don't plan on keeping for a few years
If you're going to spend $1000 then look at Apple. I would trust Apple's warranty promises over Dell/HP anyday. Just wait until a refresh to buy an Apple.
A few years ago the chinese makers realized they can sell computers themselves since Dell/HP screwed up the decent support they had in the 1990's to script reading robots. The strategy of Acer, Asus and the others is to sell a basic cheapo computer at low margins since they haven't sold their souls to wall street. Kind of like the brand X TV's from a few years ago.
I've had experience with almost every major PC brand and here are my thoughts.
Dell - like them. i have a 5 year old Inspiron laptop i gave my in laws that still works great. it's almost 10 pounds, but built like a tank and very tough. my mom has the same one except Intel graphics and no upgrades. 2GB of RAM and Vista runs great on it. Next time she visits i'm going to install Windows 7 on it. $700 and so far she's had it for 4-5 years and will probably keep it for a few more. I've also had a few Dell PC's from the late 1990's that are still running. In laws just junked one a few weeks ago since it maxes out at 512MB RAM.
HP - hate them. i have a $1500 HP business laptop that is the size of a MBP and i think it's junk. screen broke once, they keyboard is flaky and HP PC support sucks. Server support is still OK.
Acer/Gateway/Emachines - cheap but nice. i have some family who's emachines PC finally gave out after years of use. i worked on it a few months ago and no complaints. Gateway I hate.
Lenovo - they bought IBM's PC business a few years ago. Wife has a laptop from them and i like it. we have them at work as well. good build quality but pricey
Sony - hate them. overpriced junk
Apple - probably the only warranty i completely trust. The pricing is competitive right after a refresh, but after a few months a Dell with the same specs is cheaper until the next refresh. Great resale value.
For cheap buy a Dell or one of the brand X makers. Dell Mini you can even load OS X with no problems. Just don't plan on keeping for a few years
If you're going to spend $1000 then look at Apple. I would trust Apple's warranty promises over Dell/HP anyday. Just wait until a refresh to buy an Apple.
I've owned two Acer laptops. F---ing garbage. Wireless stopped working after just months on one, screen hinge broke on the latter. About 9 months after purchase the one with the screen hinge had a motherboard failure and they refused to service it because of the hinge which is rediculous because it snapped whilst gently opening it. I never treated either of them rough, I baby my equipment. Not to mention the look and feel is just.. terrible. I cannot say enough horrible things about Acer so please, stray away from them haha. Any other budget laptop will be an improvement over any Acer. Go Dell if price is the issue.
Yeah, maybe an HP, Toshiba, Dell, Sony..... But they have to be in a Desktop form, because of their quality. A Mac would be sutible for a Desktop but its a lot of money, and wanting a mac is like buying two operating systems. A Leveno is good, and I know that Asus is alright as well. Anyways, I have removed "Acer, Gateway and eMachines" out of my buy list. They are a waste of money if you had to say "Upgrade to Windows 8 the next time when it was released" for example, and upgrading them is very hard to do. So I am shipping my Acer computer today, and if they can't do anything else, I'm going to buy a Dell desktop. I'll do my homework the next time I buy a new PC (or maybe if I had to buy a Mac).
if you price out one of the new imacs and compare to a dell of the same specs than the price is the same. Dell doesn't have LED LCD's which is why they imac is a bit more expensive.
MBP was price competative in June, but now a $1500 Dell with all the upgrades equates to a $3000 15" MBP. And the Dell will have better graphics. Next MBP refresh is probably before the end of the year and that's when it will be price competitive again
MBP was price competative in June, but now a $1500 Dell with all the upgrades equates to a $3000 15" MBP. And the Dell will have better graphics. Next MBP refresh is probably before the end of the year and that's when it will be price competitive again
We've had 4 Acers in my family and all of them has been absolute disaster pieces.
1. Hard drive had to be replaced twice, one replacement was done under warranty but second one which was 2 months after the first replacement wasn't and Acer refused to fix it for free -> Had to get it replaced through customer protection office
2. Second one had a lot screen issues. Sometimes when it was booted, the computer started up but the screen stayed black. Colors were also horrible and it did strange flashing sometimes -> Acer refused to repair it (it was still under warranty)
3. Third one had battery issues. Charge lasted for less than an hour and sometimes didn't even get charged -> Replaced twice under warranty, out of it now and not even booting
4. Fourth one struggled with audio. Audio output wasn't working properly (had to be unplugged several times before I got audio) and it made strange noises from speakers too -> Acer again refused to fix it
Me and my dad have now decided NEVER to buy an Acer product again because all they have caused us is problems and AWFUL customer service.
1. Hard drive had to be replaced twice, one replacement was done under warranty but second one which was 2 months after the first replacement wasn't and Acer refused to fix it for free -> Had to get it replaced through customer protection office
2. Second one had a lot screen issues. Sometimes when it was booted, the computer started up but the screen stayed black. Colors were also horrible and it did strange flashing sometimes -> Acer refused to repair it (it was still under warranty)
3. Third one had battery issues. Charge lasted for less than an hour and sometimes didn't even get charged -> Replaced twice under warranty, out of it now and not even booting
4. Fourth one struggled with audio. Audio output wasn't working properly (had to be unplugged several times before I got audio) and it made strange noises from speakers too -> Acer again refused to fix it
Me and my dad have now decided NEVER to buy an Acer product again because all they have caused us is problems and AWFUL customer service.
I know...... $60 to get your PC shipped for repairs, instead of buying a PC that gives you free shipping for your warrenty.
I helped my mother-in-law replace an old HP tower with another PC. She settled on an AMD Sempron-based Acer desktop, for two reasons-- available at WalMart (and thus able to return/refund easily in her locale if needed), and pocket-change cheap. That was a couple of years ago, and it still runs OK for her needs: MS Office, email, light Internet browsing/Facebook.
I guess we got lucky. Then again, she's not trying to run Crysis.
I guess we got lucky. Then again, she's not trying to run Crysis.
I've had a very good experience with a Lenovo laptop, both from quality and customer service standpoints. I found a system that was competitively priced; I know they are reputed to be pricey, but I think they are getting better if you are careful about which models you look at. I've had knowledgable people recommend Asus as well.
I have perhaps 10 friends with Acers, and I must say, they are pretty flimsy.
Lots of problems, much fan noise and such. The netbooks are ok I think tho.
They are cheap tho, really cheap, but have good specs for little money.
Most of them have extremely bad screens, and with full brightness they are like when i have my MBP @ ~40%...
When it comes to laptops, you get what you pay for!
If you want a PC laptop, look at the more expensive Levonos, Asus or Dell.
There are quite a few solid PC laptops out there, but I've never seen a decent Acer.
Lots of problems, much fan noise and such. The netbooks are ok I think tho.
They are cheap tho, really cheap, but have good specs for little money.
Most of them have extremely bad screens, and with full brightness they are like when i have my MBP @ ~40%...
When it comes to laptops, you get what you pay for!
If you want a PC laptop, look at the more expensive Levonos, Asus or Dell.
There are quite a few solid PC laptops out there, but I've never seen a decent Acer.
I never use Acer but i heard A LOT of complaints about them. 2 of my friends used them but they said so far they have no problems, probably it's because both of them don't use their laptops as much as i do
If i were you, i'd go for Lenovo, used to own one before switching to Mac and they are pretty good, worth the money.
If i were you, i'd go for Lenovo, used to own one before switching to Mac and they are pretty good, worth the money.
My dad had 4 different Acer laptops and they all had problems. He later switched to an IBM laptop and he's happy with it.
I know that It's a fact that Acer's laptops used to be crap, but I don't know about the company at the moment. I've read in forums and discussions that they've gotten their act together and is now on even grounds with other PC notebook manufacturers, but that might be just all talk.
I know that It's a fact that Acer's laptops used to be crap, but I don't know about the company at the moment. I've read in forums and discussions that they've gotten their act together and is now on even grounds with other PC notebook manufacturers, but that might be just all talk.
We have a couple of IBM/Lenovo Thinkpads (T60/T61p) in the office and they've lasted 2-3+ years (one had a memory stick failure), running linux/windows. Their batteries are really good BTW - my original one is still at 98% after 2 years of light use - I unplug the battery when at my desk.
Their cases stand up well to abuse, and I love the matte black - like a little black FM Dress they never go out of style (;
Of the dozen Dells we've had in the office (mostly the really cheap ones), we've had almost no problems, but they only get light use.
To be honest the MBP quality scares me - I continuously hear horror stories of 800USD repair bills because someone spilled some water on the keyboard. IMO terrible Apple 'design' for use in a supposed 'Pro' machine. Additioanlly, although aluminium gives the impression of being being very robust, it's not necessarily the best material for notebooks - it bends, doesn't absorb shocks, etc.
The Acers I've seen don't inspire much confidence, but at that price, buy two... My youngest brother just got a monster 18inch Acer for uni, we'll see how that holds together. My other brother has had a Dell at uni (again a lower cost model) and it survived 3 years, got soaked with 1.5L of water in his sports bag, Dell repaired it free of charge (DellCare warranty covers accidental damage) and he and 6 guys lugged it round CA for 3 months as their only computer. Looks like crap but it still works...
PS I remember the days when Toshiba was a premier laptop company, with some of the most reliable laptops on the market...
Their cases stand up well to abuse, and I love the matte black - like a little black FM Dress they never go out of style (;
Of the dozen Dells we've had in the office (mostly the really cheap ones), we've had almost no problems, but they only get light use.
To be honest the MBP quality scares me - I continuously hear horror stories of 800USD repair bills because someone spilled some water on the keyboard. IMO terrible Apple 'design' for use in a supposed 'Pro' machine. Additioanlly, although aluminium gives the impression of being being very robust, it's not necessarily the best material for notebooks - it bends, doesn't absorb shocks, etc.
The Acers I've seen don't inspire much confidence, but at that price, buy two...
My youngest brother just got a monster 18inch Acer for uni, we'll see how that holds together. My other brother has had a Dell at uni (again a lower cost model) and it survived 3 years, got soaked with 1.5L of water in his sports bag, Dell repaired it free of charge (DellCare warranty covers accidental damage) and he and 6 guys lugged it round CA for 3 months as their only computer. Looks like crap but it still works...PS I remember the days when Toshiba was a premier laptop company, with some of the most reliable laptops on the market...
Acer, and most of the other manufacturers build disposable laptops.
You buy it, use it for those few months you really need it for and then try to sell it before it's broken.
If it's the best your friend can afford, then get it. Money is tight for all of us, so it'll see him/her through for a year of so until things get better.
Recommendations for Apple and Lenovo are only helpful if your friend has the money. Don't even think of borrowing money to buy a laptop. Dell, HP and Sony are all slightly better value.
A smart move is to look at the 2nd hand market - but you do have to be extra careful with laptops - buy an older laptop for pennies, working or not, and fix it yourself. You wouldn't believe the number of old laptops I fixed at an old company (not even my job, I was the DBA) just be replacing the PRAM battery. Budget laptops tend to use cheap mass-produced batteries too, that you can but in the supermarket as camera batteries for under $2.
Can remember the joy it brought to one big guy (built like a Dallas Cowboys line-backer) who was strapped for cash and didn't have the money to replace the "dead" laptop for his kids. Brought it in, I opened it up, we went to the supermarket at lunch, bought the battery off the shelf, put it in and it started up first time.
You buy it, use it for those few months you really need it for and then try to sell it before it's broken.
If it's the best your friend can afford, then get it. Money is tight for all of us, so it'll see him/her through for a year of so until things get better.
Recommendations for Apple and Lenovo are only helpful if your friend has the money. Don't even think of borrowing money to buy a laptop. Dell, HP and Sony are all slightly better value.
A smart move is to look at the 2nd hand market - but you do have to be extra careful with laptops - buy an older laptop for pennies, working or not, and fix it yourself. You wouldn't believe the number of old laptops I fixed at an old company (not even my job, I was the DBA) just be replacing the PRAM battery. Budget laptops tend to use cheap mass-produced batteries too, that you can but in the supermarket as camera batteries for under $2.
Can remember the joy it brought to one big guy (built like a Dallas Cowboys line-backer) who was strapped for cash and didn't have the money to replace the "dead" laptop for his kids. Brought it in, I opened it up, we went to the supermarket at lunch, bought the battery off the shelf, put it in and it started up first time.