I recently purchased a new laptop, one that would fit in my budget range. As a designer, I needed one that could support my daily multitasking projects using apps like Adobe Photoshop, After Effects and maybe some gaming too.
After searching around town, I was enticed by these few models :
Acer Aspire 5740G = RM 2,999.00
- Intel Core i-5-520m (2.4ghz Turbo Boost up to 2.9ghz, DDR3 1066 MHz, 35 W)
- 500GB HDD (7200rpm) + 4 GB DDR3 SDRAM
- 15.6″ LCD (1366x768px)
- ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 5470 with 512 MB of dedicated DDR3 VRAM
- Dolby – optimised surround system & built-in stereo speakers
- 8X DVD-Super Multi double-layer drive + 4 in 1 card reader (SD, MMC, MS, MS-Pro,XD)
- Integrated 802.11 g/gn WiFi + Integrated Bluetooth
- Windows 7 Home Premium (64bit)
Asus A42JR = RM 3,399.00
- Intel Core i5-430M (2.26GHz, 3MB L2 cache, INTEL HM55 Express chipset)
- 500GB HDD (7200RPM) / 4 GB DDR3 1066 MHz SDRAM ( support up to 8 GB)
- 15.6 inch WXGA (1366×768)
- ATI Mobility™ Radeon® HD 5470 1G DDR3 VRAM
- DVD Super Multi 8x / 4 in 1 card reader (SD, MMC, MS, MS-Pro)
- 1.3mp VGA webcam & digital micophone
- Altec Lansing® speakers
- Integrated 802.11 g/gn WiFi
- Windows 7 Home Premium (64bit)
I must admit, this is my first time buying a laptop and making a decision wasnt easy for me. Initially I wanted the Aspire 5740G because the ASUS A42JR (has a nice Radeon card and Altec Lansing speakers) was way above my budget.
The 5740G, ran a faster clockspeed of 520m (full boost) compared to the ASUS’s 430m only (I read it from this forum.) It would definitely make processing data a bit faster. Sadly, the 5740G model was just out of stock and had to wait a few days.
A week later, I was contacted by another vendor who inform me that new model was out – Aspire 5741G.
Acer Aspire 5741G = RM 2,999.00
- Intel Core i-5-520m (2.4ghz Turbo Boost up to 2.9ghz, DDR3 1066 MHz, 35 W), supporting Intel® 64 architecture, Intel® Smart Cache)
- 500 GB HDD (7200rpm)
- 15.6″ HD LED screen
- 4 GB DDR3 SDRAM with 1066 MHz memory (support up to 8 GB)
- NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 320M with 1024 MB of dedicated DDR3 VRAM
- 8X DVD-Super Multi double-layer drive / 4 in 1 card reader (SD, MMC, MS, MS-Pro,XD)
- Integrated 802.11 g/gn WiFi
- Integrated Bluetooth
- 1 year full international warranty
- Windows 7 Home Premium (64bit)
My first response was the price tag of RM 2,999 which didn’t exceed my budget and liked how the cover looked with the silver and chrome-like texture.
It was comfortable using the keyboard which was quite yet responsive. Even using the touch-pad was splendid having edges for easier finger movements, better than previous 5740 model which had invisible edges, No comfort at all as my fingers regularly drifted off the pad.
I was suprised it had a juicy 1GB NVidia card and 4 GB of RAM! Too bad it didn’t come with Dolby speakers or any fancy buttons like the previous one.
I was satisfied with it and made the purchase. It came with 10 freebie items to choose, plus an Acer slingbag.
Do you think it was a good buy or would you recommend some other model?
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Although i am amatuer and never recommend to Acer, i still try a little bit comment.
See whether you would like to use long or short term, if long term should go for higher quality.
Should be focus higher ram, graphic card, and processor on your own case.
consider the budget and performance:
Acer Aspire 5741G > Asus A42JR > Acer Aspire 5740G
Hopefully it will helpful.
Thank you for the helpful tip, I should keep it in mind for my next purchase.