Acer Aspire One AOD 255-1203 review

Sometimes you have to wonder if Acer is even remotely concerned about profit margins, given how aggressively priced its laptops are. The Aspire One AOD255-1203 ($329.99 street), for instance, is the company’s latest netbook, which sports Intel’s newest dual-core Atom—the N550 (1.5GHz). Among the handful that have already been launched with this processor—the Asus EeePC 1015PEM ($370 street, 4 stars) and HP Mini 5103 ($650 direct, 4 stars)—the AOD255-1203 is undoubtedly the most inexpensive. But, you still get a full-size keyboard and over 7 hours of battery life.

Design
Less than an inch thick (10.2 by 7.5 by 0.8-inches), the AOD255 is Acer’s thinnest netbook available, and at 2.5 pounds, it’s the lightest too. Its color selection, though, boils down to taste, but Aquamarine blue is one of those colors that will either be swiped off the shelf or left there to rot. Thankfully, it’s available in other colors like Ruby Red, Sandstone, and Diamond Black. The maroon colored Asus 1015PEM, on the other hand, takes a more neutral approach to design. If fancy is what you’re after, the HP 5103 uses aluminum in its lid design.

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The AOD255’s 10-inch wide screen with 1,024 by 600 resolution is a common feature found in most of the netbooks. Other netbooks, like the HP 5103 and Dell Inspiron Mini 10s (HD) ($425 direct, 3.5 stars), have options for a 1,366 by 768 resolution. Bigger netbooks, like the 12-inch Asus EeePC 1215N ($500 street, 4 stars), standardizes on a 1,366 by 768 resolution. In the 10-inch space, the AOD255-1203 is one of the three netbooks that squeeze in a full-size keyboard. Though it isn’t as responsive as the keyboard found in the Toshiba Mini NB305-N410 ($400 direct, 4.5 stars), it still renders an exceptional typing experience. Acer has also widened the touchpad, so it is now as large as that of the Asus 1015PEM, and has tuned out the clacking noises that used to come from the mouse buttons.
Specifications

Type
General Purpose, Ultraportable, Value, Netbook
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 7 Starter Edition
Processor Speed
1.5 GHz
Processor Name
Intel Atom N550
RAM
1 GB
Weight
2.5 lb
Screen Size
10.1 inches
Screen Size Type
widescreen
Graphics Card
Intel GMA 3150
Storage Capacity (as Tested)
250 GB
Networking Options
802.11n
Primary Optical Drive
External

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Features
Its features aren’t jaw-dropping, and you wouldn’t expect them to be traded at this price. The AOD255’s 3 USB ports, Ethernet, Multimedia Card slot, and Webcam are average add-ons for a netbook in terms of hardware. These features are the same as the ones found in Toshiba NB305-N410 and Asus 1015PEM. Even the 250GB (5,400rpm) hard drive is a standard fare. Spending more money on a netbook will move you up in the features chain: The HP 5103, for instance, ships with a faster spinning drive (7,200rpm); the Dell Mini 10s has an HD decoder card, for a smoother high-definition video playback; and the Asus 1215N features an HDMI port.

Upgrading the standard 1GB memory configuration (which the AOD255 has) to 2GB is a common netbook performance tweak. Unfortunately, the AOD255 doesn’t makes it easy to do. You’ll have to remove at least 7 screws in order to access the memory slot. The Asus 1015PEM’s memory slot, on other hand, is accessible by removing a single screw. Better yet, the HP 5103 has a tool-less panel: The latches that remove the battery also release the memory panel.

Performance
Since their inception, netbooks have used nothing but single-core processors, most of which are based on the Intel Atom platform. Only recently Intel did launch its mobile dual-core Atom, which is only available in a handful of netbooks. The AOD255 joins the Asus 1015PEM and HP 5103 in running on the Intel Atom N550 (1.5GHz). Before you get too excited, please note that performance improvements are only marginally higher than the single-core Atom N450 and N455 (1.67GHz). In SYSMark 2007 Preview tests, the AOD255 scored 42, which is about 10% better than the Toshiba NB305-N410 (38) and Dell Mini 10s (39). In Cinebench R11.5, its result of 0.48 was identical to that of the HP 5103 and Asus 1015PEM.

With little variation between components, the best battery scores are usually determined by the battery’s capacity. At 49WH, the AOD255 has one of the smallest batteries in this group, yielding a MobileMark 2007 score of 7 hours 42 minutes. With their bigger batteries, the HP 5103 (66WH), Asus 1015PEM (63WH), and Toshiba NB305-N410 (61WH) broke the 8-hour mark. Still, over 7 hours of battery life is long enough for a coast-to-coast flight.

There’s a lot to like about a netbook that keeps getting better, while consistently lowering its price. The Acer Aspire One AOD255-1203 is the most inexpensive netbook to give you a dual-core Atom processor, a full-size keyboard, and over 7 hours of battery life. Despite its list of accolades, however, it’s not the best netbook. The Toshiba mini NB305-N410, our Editors’ Choice, gives you 9 hours of battery life and the best typing and navigating experience on a netbook