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Acer's new 3D laptop gets mixed responses
by Ayurdhi Dhar - October 22, 2009 - comments
The new Acer 3D notebook with p-olarized glasses
Taipei, Taiwan, October 22 -- Acer, which is generally known for its no-frills cheap laptops, has decided to take a quantum leap in changing their reputation. They are out with the first ever commercial laptop that is equipped with a 3D display.
The model is Acer Aspire 5738DG, and the name adapted for the screen is “tridef”.
The announcement has not caught the fancy of many since they are predicted to be using the stereoscopic screen, which implies that one would need polarized glasses to experience the effect of 3D.
The 3D effect
There is Acer's 3D CineReal technology which adds a special coating on the screen which the polarized glasses can recognize and changes into a 3D experience.
Nobody seems too enthusiastic about the tacky glasses which usually accompany 3D screens, but according to Acer, theirs are sporty and stylish.
Despite these reservations, the response from gaming geeks seems very promising. New 3D games like Resident Evil 5 have taken 3D gaming to a completely new level.
Laptop's specifications
The notebook has a 15.6 inch screen, and the software supports 3D movies. It can also convert 2D movies into 3D.
The notebook is getting launched with Windows 7 powering it. That is the reason Acer had not made an official announcement; they were waiting for the launch of Windows 7.
It has a Intel core 2 duo T6600 processor, and has a screen resolution of 1366 x 768. The graphics, which are an essential part since it targets the gamers, are being handled by ATI Radeon HD 4570 card which has its own dedicated 512 MB of RAM. The hard drive is of 320 GB capacity, while the RAM is of 4 GB.
Apart from all this, there is Wi-Fi connectivity, a DVD player, and an HDMI port. The cost is estimated to be around $779.99.
Mixed response
Even though the reports have not been too optimistic, it is too early to judge. The screen is being sen as worthwhile, and the laptop is being called ordinary except adding on to some experience to the games that it can support.
Critics are also saying that a polarized 3D screen is no more a thing of the future, and while everyone is trying to one up each other on better technology, the 3D laptop seems like a gimmick.
Acer is currently world's third largest PC brand, and second largest laptop manufacturer.