While buying a laptop, everyone eyes the best in class hardware without paying much heed to their need. Just ask yourself one question before buying- what would you actually do with your new laptop? If the answer is something related to just browsing internet, watching movies, working on office, spreadsheets and PPTs then the Acer Aspire E5-511 should grab your attention. It is affordable and also caters well to your basic computing needs. Acer Aspire E5-511 Acer has been a prominent player in the budget notebook segment in India for quite some time. The Aspire E5-511 seems to have hit the sweet spot in consumer’s mind with the right blend of hardware and price. The device offers a 15.6-inch display in premium matte black finish. It’s a bit heavy and weighs around 2.5 kgs. On the connectivity front it offers a VGA port, Gigabit Ethernet port, HDMI port, two USB 2.0 ports and a USB 3.0 port, 3.5mm audio port, disk drive and SD card reader. Price: Rs 21,422 (at Amazon.in with Linux) Performance The Aspire E5-511 is capable of offering decent computing prowess through its quad-core Intel Pentium N3530 processor coupled with 2GB DDR3 RAM and 500 GB HDD. However, Windows 8.1 make multi-tasking difficult. You will have to be a bit patient with this system. As this laptop is primarily meant for limited usage, users might get more out of it by either downgrading to Windows 7 or opting for Linux. Be sure to get the drivers beforehand. Don’t expect anything on the gaming front. This device is strictly for those who need a basic system at a budget-friendly price tag. What is good? As a brand, Acer tries to ensure that consumers always get more than what others are offering at the same price. You get a full-size chiclet numeric keypad. A large 15.6-inch display along with a precision touchpad which makes a lot of sense if you are running Windows 8.1. Overall, the build quality is good and makes a good for users in this price segment. The Aspire E5-511 also offers good battery life with limited heating issues. What is bad? While the precision touchpad gives a feel that you are using a touch screen device but its location was a bit disturbing for me. I personally did not like the location of touchpad, which is more towards the left side. I am using the higher end Asprie E5-571 and I really hate it while typing as every left click turns into a right and the cursor just moves away at the slightest touch from my left thumb. Verdict The Acer Aspire E5-511 is a no doubt a good buy for those users who are sure about their computing needs. If you are a frequent gamer or deal with multimedia then stay away from this.
