This is a pretty decent laptop, especially considering that it's a few hundred dollars less than many of similarly sized Ultrabook alternatives if you're shopping around for an 11.6" form factor.
While it's less svelte than the ultrabooks and the battery life isn't fantastic, it's definitely a big step up in computing horsepower (an i5 processor, 6GB of RAM) from cheaper alternatives. You can also buy the same series and save $150 going w/ an i3 and 4GB RAM instead, which is probably a better deal for most people: Acer Aspire V5-171-6675 11.6-Inch Laptop (Silver). Or, if you don't need a workhorse, you could save even a hundred more w/ the Aspire One/other netbook style notebooks (lots less horsepower, but missing things like USB 3.0, Bluetooth 4.0, etc). If you don't need Windows at all, that new Samsung Chromebook (Wi-Fi, 11.6-Inch) is $250 and looks darn sexy.
There are lots of reviews online (search for Acer Aspire V5 reviews) that have video and do a good job of covering things. I'll just add a few notes from the perspective of someone's that's used a lot of hardware and software, but mostly uses Macs right now (and a Macbook Air for my primary laptop).
* Build-quality, svelteness is nowhere near the MBA of course, but overall it's well put together. The keyboard feels good and the hinge and overall chassis seems solid, doesn't squeak, etc. The hinge opens to almost 180 degrees, which is sort of nice.
* Screen is decent for the price range (as long as you don't compare w/ high-end IPS screen) glossy, but bright enough, if a bit washed out.
* Keyboard is good overall, but the arrow keys are teeny tiny.
* The trackpad is decent except for one thing that makes it nearly unusable by default the right-click is enabled for the right side, but it responds way too far left (there are no hard buttons, it's all software based) so that if you're right handed, and depending I suppose on the size of your hands and how you use the keyboard, you will end up right-clicking all the time when you mean to left-click. The only solution I could find w/ the included Elan Smart-Pad software was to make the right corner also be a regular click and assign right-click to a two-finger click. The trackpad supports gestures and two finger scrolling works fine but the "inertial scrolling" is complete crap and should be disabled.
* The AC adapter is a bit strange it's a big vertical wallwart. If you are using a powerstrip that is aligned vertically, you'll need to put it at the end.
* Setup was fine for a PC faster and less intrusive than a horrible Samsung Windows 7 Netbook I set up last year. Still, it took about 30min for the "PC Decrapifier" software to clean out the vendor junk.
* Haven't stressed it out, but haven't heard much fan noise.
* This laptop was primarily bought as a Windows testing bench at our office, but one of the reasons I bought this was also to check out Windows 8. Turns out, so far, I don't like it at all and much prefer Windows 7. As a general consumer, you may as well go w/ the latest since that'll be supported better in the future, but if you're happy w/ Windows 7, I'd try to see if you could find a laptop w/ Windows 7.
For the specs I was looking for (11.6", lightweight/compact, decent processing power) I think the V5 is a good value the best option I could find. The other laptop I was looking at was the Sony VAIO E11 Series SVE11125CXB 11.6-Inch Laptop (Black) , but the processor is much weaker (Brazos 2.0 about 2x older netbooks, but nowhere near the i5 on the Aspire V5), it's chunkier, and the battery life worse.
If you have the budget and you're planning to use this as your primary computer, I'd strongly recommend that you at the very least give some of the ultrabooks (Acer Aspire S7, Samsung S9, and of course the Apple Macbook Air) a spin, paying attention to how their screens, keyboards, and trackpads feel you may find that the extra price will be worthwhile for something that you spend hours everyday using.
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I bought this on black Friday lightning deal to replace my HP DM1Z laptop which is comparable. For reference it's an AMD Zacate E-350 dual core with switching discrete graphics and 4GB ram. Anyhow, the little E-350 was not cutting it when I had lots of browser windows open or when watching videos it would get choppy and annoying.
With this new Acer that is no longer a problem. The i5 in here chugs along super fast and has made things very pleasant. The HD4000 is adequate for anything you would likely want to on a 11.6" screened laptop. I don't find myself angry with slowdowns or issues playing youtube videos, or having 30 tabs open with remote control sessions to multiple other computers.
Things I like:
-Size: It's a great, very portable, lightweight package that has the benefit of having real ports. Keyboard is good, touchpad is fine for the most part. It's thin with good hinges.
-CPU/power: It's plenty fast for all the normal business apps, Netflix, youtube, etc. things running with a ton of stuff open. It's great not having a sacrifice in performance to get the small form factor anymore. It seems to run cool too, haven't heard the fan and it's been comfortable to have on my lap for extended periods of time.
-Real ports: I love that I have an actual Ethernet port, HDMI port and VGA. I was looking at the Samsung Series 9 and the like and you have to have dongles and adapters for everything. Having the actual port and just being able to bring the laptop and not worry about 10 different dongles to actually get connected to something is priceless. Having the USB 3.0 is great as well. Ports are well laid out and easy to get to. SD card slot is nice to have as well.
-Price: This is a given, you're looking at 1100 for most of the other ultrabooks that even hit on the specs this has (gen3 i5, 6GB ram)
Things I don't like:
-This is nitpicky but I wish the touchpad was slightly farther over to the right. This is more a getting used to it issue though and it's only been better the more I use it but there were times I'd would right click instead of left on accident when using both hands on the touchpad with left pointer moving the mouse and right hand fingers to mouse button. This is more just a getting used to it thing. The multi-touch works decently well.
As mentioned the power adapter is kinda weird with no power brick in the middle but all the bulk is there by the plug. This can make it difficult to plug in to some places. There are aftermarket power adapters on amazon for 9 bucks though that have a more standard setup to ease this issue.
-Battery: Well, it's pretty close to the 5 hours or so quoted with wifi on doing normal tasks. Which is really pretty impressive for a battery that is so small. I would love the option of adding a 6 cell battery for a bit extra capacity but as of 12/4/12 they don't seem to exist for sale. Battery is fine for what it is for the most part though.
-Hard drive: Reading the reviews on this ahead of time the 500GB 5400rpm HD was said to be a weak point. I put in a 240GB SSD to replace it as soon as I got it so I can't say too much on that. For the hour I used it with the drive it seemed fine. Do note though that if you replace the hard drive with the SSD you want one that is 7MM or thinner. I already had this SSD that I had loaded into the HP and it's a 9.5mm thickness. It works but it was quite tight putting the bottom cover back on and bulges a bit. It's been fine since though so I'm not going to worry about it. If you are getting an SSD, or for anyone getting the laptop really it's a good idea to buy a cheap 16GB SD card as well. The system recovery software from Acer will format an sd card and load all the recovery files onto it in case you ever need to wipe and reload the system. Or in this case put in a ssd and have it reload the system onto that cleanly.
-Windows 8 is frustrating in a lot of ways but I'm trying to force myself to get used to it in the stock form to better be able to support clients once they inevitably get some Windows 8 machines at some point. If I didn't have that then buying Start8 for a few bucks and putting it on here would make Windows 8 great. You can do all the multi-touch gestures on the touchpad so you can get away without a touchscreen for the most part. I don't even want a touch screen laptop as who wants all the finger smears all over the screen all the time. Windows 8 is quite fast though on the bootups and shutdowns. I do give it credit there.
So overall I'm quite happy with the purchase. (Especially getting it for $439 on black Friday). This computer is a much better deal than spending twice the price for a few MM of thickness saved. Definitely a solid choice for anyone who doesn't need a big screen. (You can run multiple external monitors with it with ease for a primary desk, there are some decent USB 3.0 docking solutions.)
***Edit 1/11/13 I have added a little more on the ssd and corrected the sizing of the 9.5mm thick one I have (you still want a 7mm ideally). I've been using the laptop daily now for well over a month and love it. Still nice and fast and it works great. Make sure if you buy this to go to acers website and download the latest driver updates, most namely the driver update for the Atheros wireless drivers. The put out a x.x.x.217-v3 version that you NEED to install. This cures some weird wireless disconnection issues a number of people were having. I'm bumping this laptop up to 5 stars now that that is good.
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I ordered this laptop because I am a student, so portability and price are important. i was torn between the asus vivobook and this model, since both have a 11.6 screen. i was willing to trade off the touch screen option for a stronger processor. BIG mistake, esp for window 8.
I think if you are a student, a better choice would be a Asus Vivobook at 11.6, which like I said, comes with touch screen, but with a lower ivy core i3. the i3 is fine for basic uses and media purposes. (i saw it on sale for 400-range on slickdeals.net, which is slightly better than amazon prices).
now more into this laptop.
I am actually returning this acer for several reasons:
-erratic, weird touchpad. several reviewers have mentioned this but i heed no attention. but it DOES make such a BIG difference. after a while, it gets so annoying that i have to purchase a additional portable usb mouse (i got the sabrent mini high precision mouse for around 5.29 on amazon, which is great for me since i am a girl with small hands)
the erratic touchpad leads to another big issue, which definitely is the last straw for me. so, window 8 functions so that, everytime you mouse arrow is in the left margin, it automatically switches to the window 8 home screen, which displays plenty of apps. and what's worst. sometimes when you do not intend to click on the left corner, it STILL takes you back to the win8 home screen. after a while, it definitely disrupts productivity.
I have owned a hp, acer netbook, samsung tablet, an ancient dell inspiron 1525, and so far this is got to be the worst touchpad.
-3rd and last part, even with a i5 core, the video editing capacity is adequate. for sure, it will get the job done on cyberlink powerdirector.
I am returning this to get a SONY VAIO S 13.3 inches instead, since it is comparative to a macbook pro, however, sony has a student special deal combined with a free i5 to i7 upgrade, which costs around 850.00 there vs 1300.00 on amazon.
final verdict: if you can overlook the touchpad and really need something basic, i say go with the vivo instead. it is cheaper and the touchpad problem wouldnt drive you absolutely insane. if you are planning to use to laptop for basic functions, which some video editing capacity, then either the vivo or the aspire will do. but if you are planning to use it for intensive adobe cs5, illustrator, and video-editing work, then do shell out 3-400 bucks extra and do yourself a favor and stick with something else.
Honest reviews on Acer Aspire V5-171-6422 11.6-Inch Laptop (Silky Silver)
I originally bought this computer because it was small and portable but also packed a little bit of a punch. I have owned it for a couple months and I love it so far. I am not a huge fan of Windows 8 but can't blame Acer for that.
Pros: Very portable, Durable, Quick start up, Keyboard isn't as small as i thought it would, Price.
Cons: Miss a back light beneath the keyboard, Mousepad isn't as responsive as other computers i have used (macbooks). The keys on the keyboard don't have a high quality feel when you hit the keys (being picky)
Overall i would highly suggest this computer if you are looking for a step right above the lower level i3 processor computers. The price is great for what you get. If you are looking for a computer above the lower level $350 computers and the $699 i7 computers this is a great pick.
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I have been looking for an affordable 12" netbook with good performance for a long while. The Macbook Air 11.6 looked to be the only powerful candidate on the market, aside from the slightly larger Lenovo x230. Fortunately, Acer has created this awesome laptop. This laptop can run keep up with a Macbook air, especially if you add a SSD. What's more is you can add/remove components if you need (sorry Mac users, you'll have to go talk to a 'genius' in the Apple store and wait for a replacement). The only thing the Macbook has on this Acer is a backlit keyboard. The Atheros wifi NIC is always a plus (as opposed to Broadcom).
My beefs would be the touchpad's sensitivity, the lack of a backlit keyboard, and the battery life. The touchpad issue is resolved by using the ELANTECH touchpad drivers instead of the Synaptics (also adds two finger scrolling). Ubuntu didn't allow me to click+drag but Linux Mint 14 did (I prefer Mint anyways). The display is LED, but rather reflective. This is to be expected from a budget netbook. As for the battery life, I'm hoping for a 6-cell replacement to come along. All in all, a good buy for the price.
Update, 7/7/2013:
The touchpad has driven me to sell the laptop. In Windows 7, the only issue is that right-click is difficult to do, at least by simply using the right touch pad button. In Ubuntu and Linux Mint, the touchpad's navigation seems to only follow an x and y axis style of movement (using synaptics driver) and does not move diagonally near as well as it does in Windows 7.
