‘Hummingbird’: Acer’s ultrabook launched in Philippines

Acer Aspire S3

Eight years ago, Intel changed the PC landscape when it introduced the Centrino processor, enabling laptops to become Wi-Fi capable, thus making the devices truly mobile.

Now another revolutionary transformation is happening as Intel announced the coming of super-laptops known as ultrabooks, which are superslim and light devices, featuring batteries that last for days.

These devices may boot up in seconds, and are powerful enough for demanding content creation tasks.

Apart from being ultrathin, this new category of Windows-run laptops come in metal chassis and are priced competitively at $1,000 plus, making it accessible to a market looking for thin form factors without paying the price of an Apple Macbook Air.

The first ultrabook launched in the country was the Acer Aspire S3, a 13.3-inch laptop, also known as “Hummingbird.”

The razor-thin Aspire S3 only measures 13 mm at its thinnest point and weighs 1.4 kg.

It has an aluminum magnesium alloy chassis that encases a high-definition display.

It is powered by second-generation Intel Core i processor (Core i5 clocked at 1.6 GHz capable of Turbo Boost of up to 2.3 GHz) and 4 GB DDR3 memory.

As an Ultrabook, the Aspire S3’s battery can run up to seven hours.

In addition, the thin laptop can last an unbelievable 50 days on a full charge battery when in deep sleep mode, according to Dio Vasquez of Acer Philippines.

The feature “Instant On” will enable Aspire S3’s operations to resume from sleep mode in less than two seconds even if a user has several windows open. With this feature, it may switch the laptop back on only after six seconds.

The laptop’s “Instant Connect” feature allows the laptop to hook up with the Internet in a mere 15 seconds, as Vasquez demonstrated.

“So far, it’s the fastest laptop to connect to the Internet,” said Vasquez.

The new notebook also features a combined solid state drive (20 GB) and hard disk drive (320 GB) that helps provide quicker access to files, he added.

The Aspire S3 features a “Thermal Comfort” airflow cooling design. With it, the laptop now has a ventless bottom. The hot air flow goes out of the rear, making parts of the laptop cooler.

The laptop also features a highly efficient motor design that optimizes operational performance while it lowers power consumption by up to 50 percent, prolonging battery life.

According to Intel country manager Ricky Banaag, global PC makers will shift 20 percent of their product lines to Ultrabook production, explaining that the Santa Clara-based chipmaker is really serious about the Ultrabook, having invested $300 million into its development.

The “Hummingbird” may retail for P44,900.