I was looking for a laptop/notebook to connect to my 60" flat-screen television. A fair amount of research led me to choose this unit as it was low-priced (~350), offered solid graphics performance in the dual-core AMD E-350 APU, integrated HDMI output connection, decent-sized hard drive and running Windows 7 (64-bit). Only minor negative associated with this unit is it only has 2Gb memory installed. However, that 2Gb is on one stick and unit has a second slot available.
I purchased a stick of Crucial CT25664BC1067 2GB 204-PIN PC3-8500 SODIMM DDR3 Memory Module for ~20 bucks to address this shortcoming. Installing it was a breeze. Just remove the two screws securing the hard drive/memory access panel and insert a flat blade screwdriver at the indentation of door and work it around the panel. The panel is retained by a collection of small tabs spaced about an inch or so apart around the perimeter of the panel. Just work the flat blade screwdriver around the panel, twisting the screwdriver as you come to each tab to cause it to disengage from the body of the laptop. Open memory slot will be on the bottom right under a clear film sheet. Lift the sheet, align the second memory stick in the open slot, insert it and then press down on the stick till the metal clips engage the stick to retain it in position. Reinstall the panel and the two screws to complete the job. Takes 5-10 minutes and you are good to go.
I did not choose to upgrade it, but replacing the hard drive would be fairly easy to accomplish as well.
Keyboard is island-style keys with open space between them. Easy to type on, but I don't recommend eating while using as the open keys are conducive to getting crumbs and such in between them.
Screen is clear, bright and sharp. Weight is a bit heavy to be a daily carry unit, but that is not what I use it for. I have a light-weight 14" laptop for that job.
Upon initial start-up you should create restore discs or a driver disc if you plan on doing a clean Windows 7 install. Then start removing the usual crap-ware you get on any pre-built unit. This unit was not especially better or worse than I have encountered before on other laptops. You can manually delete those programs you don't want, or just download and run "PC Decrapifier" if you aren't familiar/comfortable with removing unwanted software or want to speed the process up. I chose to manually remove the items I did not want.
After removing the items I did not want, I downloaded and installed the latest version of Microsoft Security Essentials (free anti-virus), ran Windows Update, and downloaded and installed the latest version of Catalyst Control Center and driver. Finally installed a couple of other applications and updates to finish the job. All total, it took a couple of hours to complete all the hardware/software tasks to get the unit just the way I wanted it.
Since then I have used it for outputting Hulu/Netflix/etc... to my flat-screen television via the HDMI port, web browsing, and office type applications. It performs all these flawlessly. I have not tried to run/play any games on the unit as I have a solid desktop system for that use and this unit probably will not run any serious game very well. Flash-based net games and older games should not be a problem.
I have not run the unit on battery power for any extended period so I can't speak to battery performance/duration.
After a couple weeks use, I have not experienced any issues with the unit and am very satisfied with the price/performance.
If you are looking for a solid laptop/notebook for home use (web browsing, e-mail, office apps, etc...), you should definitely give this unit consideration. Very good value for the price.
| Standing screen display size | 15.6 Inches |
|---|---|
| Screen Resolution | 1366 x 768 |
| Max Screen Resolution | 1336 x 768 Pixels |
| Processor | 1.6 GHz amd_e_series |
| RAM | 2 GB DDR3 |
| Memory Speed | 1066 MHz |
| Hard Drive | 250 GB SATA |
| Graphics Coprocessor | AMD Radeon HD 6310 |
| Chipset Brand | AMD |
| Card Description | Integrated |
| Graphics Card Ram Size | 256 MB |
| Wireless Type | 802.11n |
| Number of USB 2.0 Ports | 3 |
| Average Battery Life (in hours) | 3.3 Hours |
