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- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
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5 out of 5 people found this review helpful
4.5 stars
"Excellent set. Worth getting one if you are not too demanding."
Pros: Tactile keyboard, multi-user funtions, great on-line help, multiple ports
Cons: too soft speakers, built-in microphone very weak pickup, slow bootup
Summary: 1. Overall: An excellent set to have for home and small office usage if you are not a too demanding person. It has a very responsive, comfortable and easy to use keyboard. You can type for hours on the keyboard and will not feel cramped or tired.
2. Screen: The glossy screen resolution is easy on the eyes without too much glare, but it could be too reflective if your screen is facing the windows. This is easily solved by pulling the blinds. Screen brightness and contrast can be controlled. I love the vivid colours and beautiful Peacock background display which brought many admiring comments from colleagues. (Pl see the featured CNET video with the peacock feather on this product. : ) )
3. Booting: Boot up is a little slow, but you can take a break while it boots by having a cup of coffee.
4. Heat aspect: Having used the set now for about two weeks, I am pleasantly surprised that the set never gets hot even when it is on for 24/7. The battery last for an average 3 hours, sufficient for class work. I use the mains for power most of the time at home and on battery power for use in class. After a 3 hours class session I still have about 45% battery power!
5. Finger print recognition. This is a good item to have, as others will not be able to access your data in the event your laptop is stolen. It can also keep your confidential files from prying eyes. If WebPages need a login ID and password, the fingerprint will automatically log you in with just a finger touch. So it is not necessary to laboriously type in your ID and password. A pleasant and practical nice feature.
Fingerprint recognition could be a tad slow sometimes or if you have wet or too dry fingers as the computer then takes a longer time to log you in. It may need to take several attempts to read your print. This could be a software or hardware glitch.
6. Duo Core processor. The duo processor does speed up processing noticeably. This 1.66 MHz computer is as fast if not faster than my desktop 3.03 MHz machine. I find no noticeable difference in processing speed between the two. I was glad games played on this machine did not suffer from any lag.
7. Portability: The set at 2.3 kg may be lighter than most laptops and if you are carrying it only from your car to workplace or classroom, it may not pose a problem, but if you are lugging it around for any length of time it may become noticeable. However the carrying knap-sack that accompanied the set is great for protecting the computer (it has padded sides) as well as a good carrying tool.
8. Memory: The original set came with only 512MB memory but can be increased to 2MB max. For ordinary typing and data processing it is sufficient but it would be advisable to upgrade memory if you can afford it, as the set runs better, smoother and faster with more memory. The difference is very noticeable. I added in an additional 1GB of memory making it 1.512MB and the set simply "flies"!!!!! : )))))
9. FAT32 versus NTSL partition. Disk defragmentation on the original installed FAT32 partition took forever. Several times I tried defragmenting the hard drive because a message appeared that the set is highly defragmented and defragmenting the drive is highly recommended. I proceeded as directed but it took forever. Even when the set was left on overnight to defrag, the next morning it was only 85% done!!!!! I went to the Lenovo Assist Homepage to check for upgrades or a solution and found that the partition could be converted to NTSL with subsequent faster defrag. I did this and now defrag takes only all of 20minutes!!!! I wonder why the set was not shipped with NTSL partition instead of the FAT32 version?????? Be mindful though that the originally shipped hard disk has a protected FAT32 rescue and recovery partition that cannot be formatted over unless you are willing to forego the R&R facility. I dared not try to reformat the entire hard disk to NTSL just in case I lose my Rescue and Recovery, even if I have the re-installation diskettes!!!! FAT32 harks back to Windows 95/98/ME days!!!! Ha-ha
10. Ports: There are enough ports for all your requirements e.g.:
a) 1394 video editing port,
b) Ethernet port,
c) USB2 ports (4)
d) Headphone port,
e) Speaker output port,
f) SVGA output to connect to a TV set,
g) Telephone line in port,
h) Mouse port
i) External monitor port
11) Software: The bundled software is nothing to shout about, given the price of the complete set. Adding your own personal set of software boosts its utility factor a hundred fold.
12: Graphic Card: It is a real pity that a graphic card cannot be added to the machine so one has to live with the inbuilt integrated graphics. It does an admirable job, but if another dedicated card can be added it would be a boon. Perhaps Lenovo service and repair could add in an optional card if so required. Will enquire Helpline to find out if this is possible and revert back to you. Or alternatively add a dedicated graphics card as an extra option when you purchase the set.
13. Bluetooth. This set came with Bluetooth capability. It connects very with my hand phone and I pod devices, downloading and uploading data flawlessly. Initially the Bluetooth was mysteriously disabled when the computer was first booted up, showing a yellow ¡°unrecognised¡± device in Device Manager. A visit to the Help Page revealed a necessary but crucial Bluetooth patch program to make it work.
14. Built-In speakers. This is the Achilles¡¯ heel of the otherwise excellent set. The output from the built-in speakers is disappointingly soft. It can only be heard if you are in an enclosed silent room. In the classroom, the output cannot be heard at all even though the surrounding noise level was not overwhelming. You will need external speakers to hear adequate output. I have a home as well as portable flat speakers that attaches to the speaker output and the result was admirable and a distinct advantage over the in-built ones. I bought an excellent portable speaker with USB attachment to power from http://sunnylife.com.au/product_details.asp?Range_id=14&PRODCAT_ID=54&Prod_ID=84
which I highly recommend to everyone.
15. DVD Burner: A necessary and important feature if you wish to duplicate DVD data disks. Most laptops come with ordinary CD writer and DVD reader only, sometimes only the former. So a DVD writer/reader is most welcomed.
16. Built-in microphone. This tiny device is wholly inadequate for normal recording as the reproduced voice is disappointingly soft to be heard audibly. An additional external high-sensitivity microphone is highly recommended. This could be wholly due to the inadequate speaker output.
17. Built-in WIFI. This is a valuable feature as you can instantly log on to any available broadband access point in your locality. I have several to choose from but since I am already subscribed to my own Broadband provider which gives protected and dedicated access, it was superfluous to log onto any other. However I tried and successfully logged into an unprotected account/site in my vicinity and to briefly surf the internet. (This was just to test its capability). But being unprotected means you can be hacked or high jacked by malicious hackers around. So be careful!
18. Built in camera: We now come to the cr¨¨me de la cr¨¨me of the set: - a built in camera. This feature can almost be missed if one is not careful in inspecting the set (just like the microphone pickup point). It is so tiny that it is almost obscure. Only if you search for it can you see a tiny pinhole with a video camera logo that denotes that indeed this is the camera. At only 1.3 MHz resolution, it is a tad low resolution for serious work, but adequate for normal photos and videos. And at only 25 to 30 ppm, picture lag is inevitable. One can use it to practice speech or karaoke singing and play back to see results.
Pity the camera cannot be rotated like the 230 degrees-capable Acer laptop camera. The camera is static and only faces forward towards you so you cannot record lectures on the podium. Real pity.
The included software Windows Film Maker is adequate but the output is only a 3" by 4" window and cannot be made full screen. I have a better program EPECOM's Ulead Video Suite that can play the movies on full screen; unfortunately the program can only be installed in ONE computer and not two, so I cannot use it on my laptop, a real pity. I wonder if Ulead will allow it to be used on a laptop since the program belongs to just one owner.
