[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Design and basics
The design of today’s laptop computers is becoming
somehow more important than in the old days, with the kind of hot hardware
today's laptop computers run, manufacturers need to design the perfect casings.
The 730 series are no exceptions here either. The models coming with the 14.1"
TFT XGA display weighs 6.72lb, and the 15" version, 6.98lb. Of course if you
never owned or worked with a notebook computer, you may find this heavy. If
getting deeper on that subject you are right, carrying 7lbs is not easy indeed,
but this weight is far from being heavy for a loaded computer such as the
730TXV. A similar other branded laptop may easily weight an extra lb. Technology
has still a long way to go trough to improve that.
The
rear of the laptop consists of 1x PS/2 port for use with an external keyboard,
mouse or a numeric key pad. 1x 9-pin serial port, 1x VGA connector, a parallel
port, 1 x DC-in jack for AC adapter, 1x USB port, 1x Network jack port, 1x
modem jack and 1x S-video (NTSC/PAL) output. On the left side of the product
you can find an infrared port for wireless data transfers. Also on the left
side you find the inputs for the 2 x Card Bus type-II/1 and 1 Type-III slot
with ZV support, the power switch, 1.44MB floppy drive and just lower, the
sound card with the inputs and outputs (1x line out, 1x line-in, 1x microphone
input) and the volume adjuster. On the right side, you find the DVD-ROM drive
and the removable Lithium Ion Battery.
Lower
the LCD display, you have 5 LED’s. 1. Power, Lights when the computer is on,
and blinks when a battery-low condition occurs. 2. Standby lights when the
computer enters the standby mode. 3. Media activity, lights when the floppy
drive, hard disk or DVD drive is active. 4. Battery charge, Lights when the
battery is being changed. 5. Caps lock, lights when the caps lock is activated.
6. Num lock, lights when the numeric lock is activated. Not
to forget to mention, there's also a built-in microphone.
Acer claims that the battery can deliver up to
5 hours or (300 minutes) of life, I’m not sure how they actually made it to
5 hours. From our lab results, we got a maximum of 156 minutes without the
DVD-ROM being activated; the computer was in IDLE mode, 156 minutes of life
is still not bad at all, but nothing close to 5 hours.
ATI Rage Mobility M1 Chip-set
One
of the biggest problems in the notebook computer is the low-end video implantations.
There is a simple explanation to that, heat. Today’s latest desktop solutions
as the GeForce 256 or the Voodoo3 chip-sets are getting so hot, that they
could easily melt plastic. ATI made a nice route since the last few years
in that scene, they offer their RAGE Mobility line for laptops. A very attractive
product offering a large amount of video memory on-board, DVD playback and
even dual monitor capabilities.
The RAGE Mobility-M1 video solution offers one
of the largest integrated memory solution in the notebook video arena. 8MB,
enough power to run 3D applications at 1024x768 resolutions or higher, and
includes a dual-display feature which allows two different images to be output
to two different display devices, LCD & TV or LCD & CRT.
The ATI RAGE Mobility-M1 is pin-compatible with
the other members of the Mobility family, RAGE Mobility-M and P, giving ATI
the most comprehensive family of pin-compatible, low-power, high-performance
mobile graphics accelerators. ATI focused on improving the 2D, 3D and DVD
performance rather than concentrating on intermediate measures such as the
triangles/sec, bandwidth and bus width, which generally ends not boosting
any extra performance.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
The
rear of the laptop consists of 1x PS/2 port for use with an external keyboard,
mouse or a numeric key pad. 1x 9-pin serial port, 1x VGA connector, a parallel
port, 1 x DC-in jack for AC adapter, 1x USB port, 1x Network jack port, 1x
modem jack and 1x S-video (NTSC/PAL) output. On the left side of the product
you can find an infrared port for wireless data transfers. Also on the left
side you find the inputs for the 2 x Card Bus type-II/1 and 1 Type-III slot
with ZV support, the power switch, 1.44MB floppy drive and just lower, the
sound card with the inputs and outputs (1x line out, 1x line-in, 1x microphone
input) and the volume adjuster. On the right side, you find the DVD-ROM drive
and the removable Lithium Ion Battery.
Lower
the LCD display, you have 5 LED’s. 1. Power, Lights when the computer is on,
and blinks when a battery-low condition occurs. 2. Standby lights when the
computer enters the standby mode. 3. Media activity, lights when the floppy
drive, hard disk or DVD drive is active. 4. Battery charge, Lights when the
battery is being changed. 5. Caps lock, lights when the caps lock is activated.
6. Num lock, lights when the numeric lock is activated. Not
to forget to mention, there's also a built-in microphone.
One
of the biggest problems in the notebook computer is the low-end video implantations.
There is a simple explanation to that, heat. Today’s latest desktop solutions
as the GeForce 256 or the Voodoo3 chip-sets are getting so hot, that they
could easily melt plastic. ATI made a nice route since the last few years
in that scene, they offer their RAGE Mobility line for laptops. A very attractive
product offering a large amount of video memory on-board, DVD playback and
even dual monitor capabilities. 
