Acer TravelMate 8481T-6873: Remarkable Road Warrior
by Dustin Sklavos on December 11, 2011 2:22 AM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
- Intel
- Toshiba
- TravelMate
Conclusion: A Good Start, But Needs Improvement
I will say the Acer TravelMate 8481T-6873 is a surprisingly good little system. It should be; it's geared more towards professional users. Acer has done a good job with the majority of the fit and finish of the 8481T; the black brushed aluminum, solid body, and healthy battery life make it a notebook that most people would probably be happy to use on the go, and there's plenty of power under the hood, too.
Unfortunately, specs don't make everything, and I wish Acer hadn't cheaped out in certain places while keeping the business-class pricetag. I can forgive a crappy screen on an ultraportable because I'd be more apt to use it for just writing on the go, taking notes and playing the odd game of Magic. A better screen would be good, but there's no real need for high contrast and amazing colors for office applications. The SSD is slow by SSD standards, but the user experience is still snappier than any mechanical drive-based system I've tested.
But that keyboard just murders it. I've ranted and complained about this Acer keyboard here so many times I feel like I'd surprise some of the readers if I didn't go off on a tear about it, but the fact is that a keyboard is pretty much the whole reason you'd buy a laptop instead of a tablet at this point, and this keyboard sucks mightily. It's a chore to use, I find my typing is less accurate on it, and it's the kind of thing I would go out of my way to avoid.
Acer is transitioning towards a far superior chiclet-style keyboard on their consumer lines (though why the Enter and backslash keys touch is beyond me), and I could forgive the 8481T's other flaws easily enough if that was the keyboard I was working with here. Hopefully we'll see the TravelMate line move to a new style keyboard with the next refresh.
As an end consumer you're going to have to decide whether or not these are compromises you're willing to make. Acer's $1349 MSRP is frankly a bit outrageous, but you can find the system for at least $100 less if you shop around. Unfortunately, the entry-level Toshiba Portege Z830 is lighter, has a slightly faster SSD at the same capacity, and is way cheaper, and under those circumstances I'd easily go for the Toshiba. ASUS and Acer also have ultrabooks that are thinner and lighter while still offering decent build quality, and we'll have reviews of those shortly; the keyboard change along might be worth the switch. As a final option, Lenovo offers the X220 at or below the TravelMate's price range, and that notebook offers a vastly superior keyboard and processor. And all of this is before even bringing the Sony Vaio SB into the equation.
If you can find the TravelMate 8481T-6873 at a lower price and you're willing to put up with the keyboard, I could probably recommend it. It's certainly far from the worst ultraportable I've tested and it's a sterling reminder that ultrabooks aren't the only option available to PC users. But if you're as picky as I am when it comes to typing, you may want to look elsewhere.
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StormyParis - Sunday, December 11, 2011 - link
your rant just does not say why ? Layout ? feedback ? imprecise ? ... ?StormyParis - Sunday, December 11, 2011 - link
that's "you hate the".. sorry, too early.snuuggles - Sunday, December 11, 2011 - link
Yeah I agree. I just re-read the review and there are absolutely no details. It's hard to tell if this is just personal preference or if there is something mechanically wrong with itFor example, the asus ux31 has very very still action and short travel, so if you touch type and don't HAMMER the keys, you are going to miss letters. I averaged at least 2 per sentence hen I tested it out. These were besides the errors you normally make while typing, and it was fairly consistent and repeatable. In addition, several keys had spots on them where you could fully depress them and they wouldn't register. Worst was the bottom left of the enter key. That's right, the most frequently hit part if the enter key was unresponsive when fully clicked. This was demonstratible even when. It typing. I could click and hold it down on the bottom left all day with no I response
Anyways, justin, can you follow up with a few specific issues you found with this keyboard in particular? If its simply this style of keyboard you hate... We should know that
snuuggles - Sunday, December 11, 2011 - link
Gha, "stiff" not still action. Hate hate hate using my iPhone to typeJarredWalton - Sunday, December 11, 2011 - link
Added a bit of clarification on the keyboard. There's a lack of travel, the action is mushy, the flat texture is undesirable, and the keys themselves feel extremely cheap. Over the long haul, Acer keyboards don't hold up well is my experience, especially if you have any kids that might start picking at them. Hope that helps.snuuggles - Sunday, December 11, 2011 - link
Thank Jarred. If you have a chance, let us know if you've tried the UX31. I'm just curious if you're critique of this style of keyboard withstands the assualt of the supposed "high-quality" keybaord the Asus stuck in there.If I have to come down one way or another, I think I'm starting to lean towards mushy vs stiff action. At least personally, I'm able to type fairly ok with a mushy keyboard, but the UX31? woof, that thing was impossible to type on.
PS. I must apologise again for some of my error-laden previous posts. As I said, they were made on my iphone with auto-mangle on. Speaking of utterly useless... :)
JarredWalton - Sunday, December 11, 2011 - link
I know you hate the UX31 keyboard, but I wonder if you didn't just have a bad unit. I've had a laptop or two over the years where certain keys simply didn't register half the time (space bars often being the major one where I've had issues). The UX31 keys don't feel stiff to me, but they do have very little travel. One thing that the UX31 keyboard does have that's better IMO than the Acer "floating island" keys is that you're much less likely to have keys come off (get pulled off) or wear out.snuuggles - Sunday, December 11, 2011 - link
You may be right--it would be inexplicable to have reviewers experience what I experienced and continue to give it passing marks.I really wish I could find a local place that carries it so I can try another one. Everything else about it was pretty great. Oh wait, I think the trackpad was pretty bad too--can't really remember, but I think it was too sensitive? Guess it paled in comparison to the Keyboard issues I had.
Dustin Sklavos - Sunday, December 11, 2011 - link
Everything Jarred said below.Also, it's Dustin, not Justin. That's a serious pet peeve of mine.
JarredWalton - Monday, December 12, 2011 - link
It's okay, Rusty, we still love you! ;-)