Acer at CES 2012: Aspire S5, Timeline Ultra, Iconia Tab A700, and AcerCloud – The Verge

Acer Aspire Z7871 AIO hands-on pictures

2012-01-08T18:21:36-05:00

Gallery Photo: Acer Aspire Z7871 AIO hands-on pictures

Although Acer didn't give any stage time its new all-in-one entry, the 27-inch Aspire Z7871 made a fairly good first impression sitting idly by next to the Aspire S5. Measuring 3.5cm thin at points (the bump on the top third of the computer is a fair bit larger, but still very thin), the computer features an LED HD touchscreen, the "next-generation Dolby audio optimization" (which we couldn't really test at the noisy event), a number of USB ports and TV tuner, and an minimal stand design. More interesting to us is the bundled chiclet keyboard, which has similar design aesthetic and a bundle touchpad that doubles as a virtual numpad when you a …

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Acer Iconia Tab A700 video preview and specs: 1080p display, Android 4.0, quad-core Tegra 3

2012-01-08T18:13:07-05:00

Gallery Photo: Acer Iconia Tab A700 hands-on photo

Acer tried to keep the name under wraps, but we found it on the device itself: the title of the company's all-new quad-core tablet is the Iconia Tab A700. It's the same super-specced device we saw leak out a week ago, meaning 1920 x 1200 resolution, quad-core Tegra 3 processor clocked at 1.3GHz, and Ice Cream Sandwich as the shipping OS. The A700 is expected to ship in the second quarter of 2012.

The new slate will come with Bluetooth support, a microSD card slot, HDMI port, and a few of Acer's software customizations. One of them is the Acer Ring, a circular launcher menu that lets you access specific apps straight from the lock screen. I als …

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Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra hands-on pictures and impressions

2012-01-08T17:34:13-05:00

Acer Timeline Ultra hero 1

A crowded a dimly-ilt room with green LEDs strewn about is no way to showcase a new laptop, but we digress. Acer's 14- and 15-inch Timeline Ultra don't have the slimness of the Aspire S5 but still it boasts eight hours of charge and a DVD slot. Aesthetically there aren't much differences between the two devices - the AC power adapter moves from the back on the 14-inch to the left side on the 15-inch, for example, and the SD card / headphone jack have slightly different positions along the right edge. Otherwise, both have two USB ports, HDMI, and ethernet port on the back. In our brief time with the laptop, the keyboard felt snappy and the tou …

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Acer Aspire S5 hands-on video and pictures

2012-01-08T17:28:02-05:00

Gallery Photo: Acer Aspire S5 hands-on photos

Acer's new ultrabook, the Aspire S5, is living up to the "ultra" in its name: it's the thinnest ultrabook yet, which is a feat for a category defined by its thinness. It also offers a Thunderbolt port, a first outside of Apple's Mac computers. Acer describes its design as inspired by a razor's edge, and the reason for it is clear to see, the sides of the Aspire S5 come down to a sharp edge, sharper even than on the MacBook Air.

Another unique addition to the S5 is the way you access its I/O ports. There are USB and HDMI connections next to the Thunderbolt port, all of which are at the back of the computer and accessible by a door that slide …

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Acer’s AcerCloud unveil is a blatant iCloud ripoff

2012-01-08T17:26:28-05:00

Acer iCloud

Which is which? Acer just showed off its AcerCloud service, something that already sounded suspiciously like Apple's iCloud. Even the "PicStream" element sounds a lot like Photo Stream. Still not convinced? Acer basically ripped off Apple's slide wholesale, outside of the font, which is a simulacrum of Apple's font of yore. Check out both slides below.

We try really hard to highlight the important distinctions that companies bring to their me-too services, but Acer isn't making it easy. Let's try a little harder next year, yeah guys?

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Acer teases quad-core Iconia Tab with 1080p display

2012-01-08T17:08:55-05:00

Acer Iconia Tab

Acer gave us a quick look at its next-generation Iconia Tab tablet today, during the company's press conference at CES. Acer's Campbell Kan held up the tablet, revealed that it has a 1080p display and a quad-core processor, and then quickly whisked it away, saying only "isn't it cool?" We're pretty sure we're looking at the Iconia Tab A700, which we saw pictures of a few weeks ago, but we'll be trying to track down the mysterious tablet for a closer look.

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Acer CES 2012 press conference live blog

2012-01-08T16:29:23-05:00

Acer comes to CES 2012 in a state of flux. In the past 12 months, the company has changed its logo, parted ways with its CEO (Gianfranco Lanci, who now works for Lenovo), and decided on a new strategy of fewer, higher-quality products. With such a catalog of changes, all we can expect for sure is that there'll be products at Acer's press event today - follow along with our live blog to find out their number, pricing, and kind.

Read the live blog right here!

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Acer takes to the cloud with AcerCloud service, to launch in Q2 2012

2012-01-08T15:47:06-05:00

AcerCloud picstream

Acer has today announced its entrance into the cloud computing space with a feature dubbed AcerCloud. The company says the service - which will be bundled with Acer consumer PCs beginning in the second quarter of this year and available worldwide in Q4 - "securely connects all personal smart devices for anytime, anywhere access." Both media libraries and documents will be synced across connected products including smartphones and tablets; Android will be supported at launch, with Acer promising compatibility with Windows-based devices in the future.

AcerCloud's PicStream / clear.fi Photo component automatically stores cellphone-captured pho …

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Acer unveils Aspire Timeline Ultra at CES 2012

2012-01-08T15:40:11-05:00

Gallery Photo: Acer Timeline Ultra press photos (14- and 15-inch)

Acer's today announced its CES 2012 offerings. Up first, the Aspire Timeline Ultra. While we do not yet have full details (or even an image!) we do know that the ultrabook will come in 14 and 15-inch varieties, with as-yet-unspecified Intel Core i CPUs, Dolby Home Theatre v4 Surround Sound speakers, and they will feature Acer instant on, and be rated for up to 8 hours of battery life. We also hear that the Ultras will be just 20mm thick, and will have both HDMI and USB 3.0 ports. Acer says the Aspire Timeline Ultra will ship sometime during Q1 of 2012. There are no other details or pricing, but we'll keep updating as we get more information.

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Acer announces Aspire S5, ‘world’s thinnest ultrabook’ with Thunderbolt port

2012-01-08T15:39:06-05:00

Gallery Photo: Acer Aspire S5 press images

Ahead of its press conference at CES, Acer has just announced the new Aspire S5 ultrabook, which the company says is the world's thinnest - it's only 15mm at its thickest point. It's a black, magnesium-alloy and brushed-metal 13.3-inch laptop, weighing 1.35kg (2.97 pounds) and featuring Acer's Instant On technology that brings the computer back from sleep in 1.5 seconds. It also uses Acer Always Connect, which lets users manage data on their computers even when the machine is asleep - the S5 can be woken up from a smartphone, and will immediately log into email and social network accounts. There's a Thunderbolt port inside, capable of 20Gbps …

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