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Review: Acer Aspire 5742G

<img alt="" class="aligncenter" height="90" src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//Review%20images/What%20Laptop/WLT%20152/WLT152.rev3.acer_1-200-200.jpg" width="120" /> Acer aims to balance price with performance and the Aspire series has been its mainstay for many years. With the Aspire 5742G, Acer has put everything you need in a starter laptop and wrapped it up in a great-looking package. Right out of the box the Aspire has enough processing power to handle everything you want in a starter laptop, but on top of that it's also a pleasure to look at. The textured finish on both the lid and internal chassis feels comfortable and won't pick up the grubby fingerprints that curse more reflective designs. The keyboard doesn't feel quite as sturdy as some (we noticed an obvious flex in the keyboard during typing), but the keys are well spaced and easy to type on. The Aspire 5742G sports Acer's favoured keyboard where keys appear to float above the chassis. This looks great, but you'll find it quickly traps debris underneath the keys. Whilst not as comfortable as either the Sony or the Packard Bell, this style is certainly good enough for bashing out longer documents. There is also a full-sized numeric keypad, although no dedicated hotkeys. The touchpad is also comfortable to use. The Acer is built around Intel's Core i3 processor, which provides plenty of power, and is backed up by the 4096MB of memory. But what really sets the Aspire 5742G apart is the 1024MB of video memory provided by the dedicated Nvidia GeForce GT 520M graphics card. As you can see from our benchmark tests, this laptop will be fine running the current crop of gaming titles and will easily handle photo and HD video editing. Similarly, the massive 620GB of hard drive storage will provide plenty of space for all the family's data. Benchmarks Battery life: 278 minutes MobileMark 2007: 228 3DMark 2003: 11,991 Vibrant screen The 15.5-inch screen provides a great level of detail and colour vibrancy. The screen is bright and watching movies or playing games is an impressive experience. The HDMI, VGA and three USB 2.0 ports mean you can also hook it up to your HD TV for big-screen viewing. <img alt="Acer aspire 5742g" class="aligncenter" height="167" src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/Review%20images/What%20Laptop/WLT%20152/WLT152.rev3.buildacer_1-420-90.jpg" width="252" /> We achieved a very respectable 278 minutes from the battery during our benchmark tests and the chassis is sturdy enough to take a few bumps and knocks should you decide to take it on the road. We liked the Acer Aspire 5742G. The higher asking price is a bit painful to swallow, but we feel it justifies this with the dedicated graphics card, large storage space and great battery life. It's likely to future-proof better than some of the other laptops and would make for a worthwhile purchase.

Review: Acer Aspire 5742G

Acer aims to balance price with performance and the Aspire series has been its mainstay for many years. With the Aspire 5742G, Acer has put ...

Review: Benchmark Media DAC1

<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com//Review%20images/Hi-Fi%20Choice/HFC%20341/HFC341.test.benchmark_front-200-200.jpg"> <IFRAME style="PADDING-RIGHT: 10px; WIDTH: 131px; PADDING-TOP: 5px; HEIGHT: 245px" align=right marginWidth=0 marginHeight=0 src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=latesttecompu-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B003B3GV88&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" frameBorder=0 scrolling=no></IFRAME>Benchmark was one of the firms that spearheaded the current DAC revival, a few years back. In fact, it's not so much the firm itself that did it, more its reputation which went before it via the internet in true 'viral' fashion. Internet fads can, of course, crop up around all sorts of unlikely products and services, but the reality of the DAC1 is pretty much the epitome of solid engineering. You may or may not like the front panel appearance, but the stuff inside is almost a check-list of audiophile must-haves: all-linear power supply; top-quality digital receiver; sample rate converter and DAC chips. Now we said in the <a href="">Arcam rDAC</A> review that getting a basic DAC together doesn't necessarily involve much more than putting the right parts in place, but it's the detail that really matters, which will show up in the listening and lab tests. This is also true in the headphone output stage, which isn't your usual op-amp-and-a couple- of-resistors afterthought. Benchmark has provided the DAC1 with a couple of very high-performance dedicated integrated circuits for headphone driving, which boast specifications so far in advance of what's actually required for the job that it's unlikely they will be a serious limiting factor. No complaints there! As befits a device which is clearly conceived with the audio professional in mind, there are pro touches, such as balanced output alongside the phono sockets, AES/EBU digital input, and the choice of calibrated output level (adjustable via rear panel trimpots) or variable, via the front panel control. <img alt="Benchmark dac1" src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/Review%20images/Hi-Fi%20Choice/HFC%20341/HFC341.test.benchmark_back-420-90.jpg" width="420"></IMG> Build quality is excellent and operation is simplicity itself. Benchmark makes special mention of its 'UltraLock' jitter reduction system: we don't have details of how it works, but it seems effective. Sound quality If there was one aspect of this DAC's performance that caused the odd mild reservation, it's in the scale of the sound. It's not so much the business of imaging that seems to be at issue here, more the overall effect that's a combination of imaging with dynamics and tonal fullness. It is possible, though, that this is, in reality, a symptom of the DAC1's extreme cleanliness and purity of character. It does sometimes happen that very clean audio sounds a little underwhelming in the short term, simply because we expect (from past experience) a touch of roughness at high levels and when it's not there we assume the worst. It certainly has plenty of detail and an admirably neutral tonal balance. Imaging is precise and stable and there is a believable sense of 'air' around performers. In addition, there is a real sense of life and energy in the music, something which our listeners appreciated in all of the musical extracts presented. Equally in Led Zeppelin and Rachmaninov, the DAC1 captures the rhythmic quality and 'drive' of the music, allowing the emotion full rein and ensuring that it is never a boring listen. Incidentally, we can't let this review pass without also complimenting the headphone output, which is very fine indeed and for regular users of 'cans' makes an already attractive proposition look very tempting indeed.

Review: Benchmark Media DAC1

Benchmark was one of the firms that spearheaded the current DAC revival, a few years back. In fact, it's not so much the firm itself th...

Sony PSP Phone performs poorly in benchmark video

<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com///classifications/Mobile%20Phones/Sony%20Ericsson/PSP_Phone-200-200.jpg"> The upcoming Sony PSP Phone is set through the paces in a video and it looks like it has fallen somewhat behind <a href="http:///" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Googl</A>e Nexus S when it comes to power gaming. According to <a href="http://www.unwiredview.com/2010/12/09/sony-ericsson-zeus-z1-playstation-phone-gets-benchmarked-on-video/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Unwired</A> View, the <a href="http:///" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Nexus S</A> was measured a meaty 55.6fps when it was comparable to the app Neocore Qualcomm, but the Sony PSP Phone (also called Zeus and Z1), only hits about 24,4 fps average. Game over? Since the Sony PSP phone should the (admittedly the media-dubbed) the name, is a powerhouse gaming results in the video is a little disappointing. Hopefully Sony Ericsson will not only uses the brand Playstation, despite the specs for the handset. While this was prototyped a phone that was exemplary, it should be noted that the processor could be changed when the Sony PSP Phone makes its way to these shores. The current release date for the UK PSP Phone is penciled in for sometime in March. Whatever is real. It seems certainly true, but until you get our dirty gloves, it is still a bit of vapor ware. Watch the video to Engadget to see the PSP Phone reference to the action.

Sony PSP Phone performs poorly in benchmark video

The upcoming Sony PSP Phone is set through the paces in a video and it looks like it has fallen somewhat behind Googl e Nexus S when it com...