Averatec AV3270-EE1 12.1" Laptop (Mobile AMD Sempron processor 2800+, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive, DVD+/-RW Drive)

by Averatec

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 9.6 x 1 inches ; 4.5 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 7.9 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000815IJO
• Item model number: AV3270-EE1
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 17, 2005

Product Description

Averatec (AV3270-EE1) Mobile AMD Sempron 2800+ 60GB

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars First impressions, July 22, 2005

By 

Gadget Geek - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Averatec AV3270-EE1 12.1" Laptop (Mobile AMD Sempron processor 2800+, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive, DVD+/-RW Drive) (Personal Computers)

I just received the Averatec AV3270-EE1, and here are my first impressions:

I've uploaded photos of everything that was included, including screen shots of the laptop itself.

At first glance, it looks somewhat solid. The casing, as stated by Averatec, is 1" thin, and made of magnesium alloy. The outside of the case (behind the LCD) was a little scathed on arrival, not too noticable but nonetheless not something you'd expect in a brand new laptop. The keyboard portion of the casing looks very sleek. Because this is a 12.1" laptop, the keyboard is a but scrunched, though surprisingly not too bad! The battery extends out a little in the back, but not too much.

There are 3 USB ports located on the right side of the laptop, next to the CD/DVD writer, with the power plug at the rear of the right side. The 4-in-1 memory card reader is located at the front of the laptop, next to the latch to open up the laptop. The VGA output is located on the left side, alongside the Modem/Network, and a PC Card slot. To get a better idea of how it looks, view the images I have uploaded.

The internal wireless card detected my network instantly after setup. It seems to be fairly strong compared to my wireless PCMCIA cards. There is a button to enable/disable the wireless, located next to the power button. Its a feature that is good to have, and can be found in many of the newer laptops today.

Sound quality is decent for a laptop, better than my old Dell laptop, but certainly not the best.

The screen is nice, but is somewhat difficult to see outdoors in sunlight -- too much glare!

This laptop is no speed demon. However, it will be more than suitable for people using it for word processing, web surfing, and checking e-mails.

Contrary to the review by Hans Devente on May 15, 2005, the total hard disk size shown is 53.0 GB, and free space is 49.5 GB. I have uploaded a screenshot. But he is correct, there is no physical recovery CD, nor is there an actual Windows XP CD.

There was no physical product manual included; the manual is located on the desktop of the system in the form of a PDF file. Averatec's reasoning: within the packaging, it states that Averatec wants to be more environmentally friendly.

Included are several pre-installed software. Cyberlink's PowerDVD/Power2Go/PowerProducer/Medi@Show, Phoenix FirstWave Recover Pro 2004 (Recovery Software), Apple iTunes, Apple QuickTime 6.5.1, Microsoft Works, Adobe Acrobat Reader 6.0, Microsoft Office PowerPoint Viewer 2003, Netzero Platinum, and Symantec Norton AntiVirus. Upon the first bootup, several of these applications popped up asking to be registered. Norton encountered an error, and stated that it should be uninstalled/re-installed. This may just be an isolated incident. Most, if not all, retail desktops/laptops come with a bunch of this "junk" pre-loaded.


Overall, the laptop has met my expectations for a sub-$1k laptop from a relatively unknown brand, and those expectations were relatively low. For the price, I rated it 4 stars because of the issues I encountered. For those of you that are looking for a cheap full-featured lightweight laptop, look no further as this laptop fits the bill. However, if you demand the best, and have high expectations, look elsewhere.

Edit: After playing with the laptop for two weeks, I have found the laptop to be a bit sluggish. Slower than I expected, but it still gets the job done.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars WORST TECHNICAL SUPPORT AND RMA SERVICE EVER. PERIOD., February 28, 2006

By 

Jay Kay - See all my reviews

This review is from: Averatec AV3270-EE1 12.1" Laptop (Mobile AMD Sempron processor 2800+, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive, DVD+/-RW Drive) (Personal Computers)

Already had THREE RMAs.
The first time windows wouldn't boot up, "Disk Read Error, Please restart."

sent it in for RMA.

3 weeks later they sent it back.

EXACT SAME PROBLEM. They didn't Fix a THING. No Documentation NOTHING.

2nd RMA and they finally fixed it.

Couple weeks later, the screen developed bright vertical lines across it. Bending the flimsy screen develops other lines.

Tech support tells me to reinstall drivers or do a system restore. They are UTTERLY USELESS. It's OBVIOUSLY a hardware problem due to the flimsy screen.

Sent it in for THIRD RMA. They tell me they need to do a system restore.
They send it back.

I boot up.
Windows error message:
"Windows cannot start because the file comdlg32.dll cannot be found. Re-installing the application may fix this problem".

AND ANOTHER ONE:
"the system is not fully installed. Please run setup again."

on top of that, the CD drive cannot be detected so I can't even boot from the CD.

BUY THEIR LAPTOP ONLY IF YOU WANT TO EXPERIENCE HELL.


~~
Additionally, their email support is horrendously disorganized. Firstly, a different person responds to your email each time. I've had tech support people tell me conflicting things. One demanded an inquisition of questions and documents regarding my purchase before issuing an RMA #. After I strongly complained, the next guy finally issued me an RMA # without the inquisition. Ridiculous.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars You are on your own, February 18, 2006

By 

P. Basil (Cathedral City, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Averatec AV3270-EE1 12.1" Laptop (Mobile AMD Sempron processor 2800+, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive, DVD+/-RW Drive) (Personal Computers)

If you have a problem with an Averatec, you are on your own. My 6 month old machine was shipped with the wrong operating system (Averatec blamed Amazon), the keyboard was defective, and when I called for warranty service, I was treated like a felon by Averatec "customer service". The repair, which should have been free, is going to cost $250. You get what you pay for.