INTRO
Before starting, I want you to know that I own the low-end model from the list above for 4 years now, and this review is not a first impression effect of the reviewer who just layed hands on the device, but a summary of long term experience using it. Every positive aspect from the oldest in line you can apply to other device in the product line, and depending on what your requirements and expectations on the PC are, maybe you stick with it and buy it on the ebay if you find one, but I think TM owners aren’t willing to separate from this fabulous device.
For whom is this review
- You need a laptop wherever you go - lightweight
- Small enough to fit into smaller bag
- You like to draw or you are a slow typer
- You still don’t want to switch to Vista (at least not before SP2)
- You like to watch people faces as you rotate the screen around not just one axis
Is this the one
Depending on your computer usage habits and requirements you may need one more computer beside this one. If you spend more than 2 hours a day using one, you may consider buying an extra monitor and keyboard.
The buttons on the keyboard are a bit smaller, but not even people with larger fingers shold have problems.
TravelMate features 10.4 inch screen which is rotatable on two axes, so you can use it as a standard laptop, or as a tablet with a digital pen. The screen is a bit too dark comparing to todays contrast standards but unless you are used to 2000:1 contrast TFT screen, you probabbly wont mind. Because of the glass shield, it is not too sensitive to pressure.
In the standard package you get 2 pens. One is only 8cm long and is mainly for writing, but because it is only 0.5 cm thick, it becommes pretty uncomfortable after using it for several minutes. It can be used for sketching in Alias Sketchpad or Adobe Photoshop but it has only about 16 pressure levels so it is mostly suitable only for writing and handwrite recognition.
For artistic use, I recomend using second pen which is much larger, fits much better in the hand, and has larger pressure sensitivity range.
These laptop commes with Windows XP TabletPC edition which is the standard version of the XP with several more features for better usage with special features of the device.
It features on-screen keyboard for usage in tablet mode when physical keyboard is not accessable.
Handwriting recognition module allows you to transfer your handwriting into plain text. It makes pretty good job doing it after some training. With Microsoft Journal preinstalled you can write on a virtual notepad and be able to search the text later on. With the Speech recognition module which is also installed you can write your blog. But ff you are away from the keyboard only when you eat like I am, speech recognition wont be too much of the help in this moment either.
Before using it you must train the software to your voice. The built in microphone is not suitable for dictation (picks up HDD noise) so you would have to buy a better one for any serious usage. Even on C100 which has only 800MHz you can dictate without longer pauses, and the system will decode your voice with several seconds latency. This is probalby because the similar words are correctly choosen acording to the context in which they stand. It is though recomended to dictate slowly unless you want your computer to add to your creativity.
In tablet mode you can use buttons under the screen to rotate desktop 90, 180 or 270 degrees.
The connectors are different on different models. For example in C100, power cable is on the back side, which makes it uncomfortable when using the laptop in tablet mode (cable is at front). Acer fixed this in the next version C110 placing the connector on one side. Other connectors provided are extern monitor, 2x USB 2.0, Firewire, LAN and Modem socket.
There are no built-in floppy or CD drives, but Acer provides a USB FDD and FireWire DVD/CD-RW as standard kit (No extra power supply, just a 10cm USB cable)
Power supply is unlike with other laptops very small and light but the cable is a bit too long.
The C100 can run in two modes - on 300MHz and 800Mhz depending on your requirements for the battery performance. If you are willing to compromise screen brightess and turn off the Wi-Fi card (also standard with C100), it can manage 2,5-3 hours of working autonomy
Conclusion
My C100 is moslty suitable for all my regular daily needs which does not include 3D work and for 400EUR you get your ultimate blogging tool. You can dictate to your blog directly or let this little miracle convert your messy handwriting to text. With its small dimensions it easily fits a smaller bag and 1.3 Kg makes you check every 10 minutes if it is still in the bag.
Our taste for new technology grows every day. We can not buy a 5 year old laptop because we are afraid it will not support the camera we intend to buy next month and it will be too slow for the next Photoshop; but people were earning money with it several years ago, designers had only 300MHz at one point in past and it was more than enough. In these ages of Web 2.0 and server runned applications, we don’t need more than 1MHz to run Google documents, edit photos, listen music, publish news… and if you just want to scramble eggs, you probabbly don’t need a concrete mixer!
Technical details of C113TCi
- Microsoft® Windows® XP Tablet PC Edition
- Intel® Centrino™ Mobile Technology
- Intel® Pentium® M processor 753
(ULV 1.2 GHz., 2 MB L2 Cache, 400 MHz. FSB ) - Intel® 855 GME Chipset
- Intergrated Intel® Pro/Wireless 2200 BG
- Integrated Bluetooth™
- 512MB DDR-RAM
- 60GB HDD with DASP
- 10.4” TFT LCD (1024×768pixel), Weight 1.45 kg.
- 56K Fax/Modem, 10/100 Mbps LAN
- 2 USB V2.0 ports, IEEE 1394 port, Infrared port
- Acer FineTouch keyboard 5° curve
- 2 x Li-Ion Battery (Avg 3 hrs. battery life)
- External IEEE 1394 DVD/CD-RW Combo included
- 3 years Local warranty (1 year International warranty)
- 1 year insurance