Acer Aspire R 13 Convertible 2-in-1 Review
Introduction and Specifications
Acer is hoping to attract users who want flexibility with the company’s latest Aspire R 13 convertible notebook. Featuring their semi-unique "Ezel Aero" hinge, the R 13 can convert between various notebook and tablet style modes, giving you six different usage positions in a thin and light design.
The Acer Aspire R 13 measures less than an inch thick and weighs just over 3 pounds. You’ll find a 13.3-inch touch screen display with two resolution options depending on model chosen. This display is affixed to a hinge at the sides which enables it to rotate 180-degrees. For greater stability, Acer uses a forged U-frame around the display and encases the touchscreen and lid in a sheet of Corning Gorilla Glass 3.
In addition to notebook and tablet modes, the R 13 supports Ezel mode for reading and web browsing, Stand mode for touchscreen interactions such as drawing, Tent mode for using the device in tight spaces, and Display mode for viewing photos and videos. To help ensure the R 13 can be comfortably used in all of these modes, the screen features Corning’s AR/ETC technology which is designed to minimize reflections and improve the display’s contrast. The screen also has a built-in light sensor to adjust the brightness automatically.
Acer offers an optional Active Stylus accessory for the R 13. This stylus has a pressure sensor for drawing and a hover sensor as well. The R 13 also has palm rejection to eliminate marks from your hand when writing on the screen. Depending on the R 13 model selected, you’ll find either an Intel Core i5 or i7 processor inside along with up to 1TB of Solid State Drives with RAID-0 support and up to 8GB of memory. Prices start at $899.99 with various online etailers and the company offers a variety of configurations of the R 13.
Here’s a look at the full specifications of our test model:
 |
|
| Model |
Acer R13 R7-371T-78UV |
|
Processor |
2.40 GHz Dual-core Intel Core i7-5500U |
|
Graphics card |
Intel HD 5500 with Shared Memory |
|
Operating system |
Windows 8.1 |
|
Display |
13.3-inch WQHD (2560 x 1440) 16:9 Multi-touch screen Active Matrix TFT Color LCD |
|
Memory & Storage |
8 GB LPDDR3 256 GB SSD SD card reader |
|
I/O ports |
HDMI, 1*USB 2.0, 2*USB 3.0 3.5mm universal jack compatible with phone headset Webcam & microphone |
|
Wireless |
IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac |
|
Battery |
4-cell Lithium Ion 3220 mAh up to 9 hours of runtime |
|
Size |
0.7 x 13.5 x 9.1 inches |
|
Weight |
3.31 pounds |
|
MSRP |
$1,299.99 as tested, as low as $899 on Amazon |
After glancing through the specifications of our test model, you can see Acer is offering a powerful system that also offers flexibility and adaptability. Often times, we are forced to trade performance for flexibility or vice versa. The R 13 aims to give you a good balance of each. We’ll examine the R 13 in greater detail in the coming pages to see if the Acer R 13 really does offer the best of both worlds.
