Acer Aspire TimelineX 5830TG-6614

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We've seen several laptops lately that peg the intersection of the desktop replacement and budget categories at around $700. The Acer Aspire TimelineX 5830TG-6614 is a bit steeper at $779.99 list, but don't dismiss it: For one thing, we've seen online resellers offering it for around $750. For another, the 15.6-inch Aspire is loaded with everything from Intel Wireless Display (WiDi) to a discrete Nvidia graphics adapter like Acer Aspire One 521 AC Adapter, Acer Aspire 1551 AC Adapter, Acer Aspire 4551 AC Adapter, Acer Aspire 5251 AC Adapter, Acer TravelMate 8472 AC Adapter, Acer Aspire 7551 AC Adapter, Acer Aspire 1680 AC Adapter, Acer Aspire One AC Adapter, Acer Travelmate 3000 AC Adapter, Acer Travelmate 250 AC Adapter, Acer Aspire 9100 AC Adapter, Acer Travelmate 200 AC Adapter that actually passed our gaming tests at medium resolution and detail settings.

As you might guess from its model number, the Acer 5830TG-6614 is a refreshed version of the Aspire TimelineX 5830TG-6402 ($799.99 direct, 3.5 stars) we tested in August. Besides a $20 price cut and the addition of WiDi 2.0—which beams the notebook's display to an HDTV equipped with an extra-cost ($100 or so) Belkin, D-Link, or Netgear adapter—the changes include slightly faster graphics and processing hardware.

Unchanged from August is the Aspire's handsome cobalt blue aluminum lid with chrome Acer logo and matching blue plastic palm rest; the black chiclet-style keys are framed in a silver aluminum keyboard surround. There's a numeric keypad, with small but dedicated Home, End, PgUp, and PgDn keys, to the right of the primary keys; the touchpad is centered under the latter (actually, under the space bar), so some users perceive it as being too far to the left. I had no complaints myself—I quite enjoyed typing on the laptop, and the touchpad, though a little small compared to some of the jumbo ones you see today, worked smoothly, with comfortable left and right buttons instead of invisible clickpad corners.

Measuring 1.2 by 14.9 by 9.8 inches (HWD) and weighing 5.4 pounds, the 5830TG-6614 has an appealingly angular design. The 15.6-inch widescreen has the same 1,366-by-768 resolution that's ubiquitous in the class—if you want more space, you'll have to either pay for the likes of the Dell XPS 15z ($1,534 direct, 4 stars) or opt for a 17.3-inch system such as the HP Pavilion dv7-6b55dx ($699.99 list, 4 stars). Sufficient for viewing videos in 720p, the display offers a glossy finish and fairly narrow viewing angles. The laptop's audio is a good partner for those videos, with above-average sound from the Dolby Home Theater speakers mounted above the keyboard.

The Aspire strides to the front, however, in graphics tests, thanks to its 1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 540M discrete graphics adapter. Running at 1,024-by-768 resolution with medium quality and detail settings, the Acer posted a playable 39.1 frames per second (fps) in Lost Planet 2 and a better-than-playable 58.1fps in Crysis, as well as nearing the impressive 10,000-point mark (9,551) in 3DMark06.

Nvidia's Optimus technology automatically switches from the GeForce adapter to the Core i5 chip's more placid integrated graphics when running visually undemanding applications, which boosts battery life. Indeed, though I'm by nature biased against batteries sealed inside laptop cases so they can't be swapped out, it's hard to criticize the Acer's too much, because it lasted a hardy 9 hours 1 minute in our MobileMark 2007 test—trailing its 5830TG-6402 predecessor (9:57) and the HP Pavilion (9:33), but besting the Asus (7:42) and Lenovo (5:30).

Overall, the Aspire TimelineX 5830TG-6614 comes within a whisker of unseating the Asus U56E-BBL6 as our budget laptop Editors' Choice, the latter clinging to its title by dint of its lower price and removable battery. But if you're looking for an affordable desktop replacement that won't fold when you fire up a few games, the Acer is a strong candidate.