Acer Aspire 5749 review

The Acer Aspire 5749 is a new entry-level laptop. The tried-and-tested plastic chassis design is starting to show its age compared to budget models from other manufacturers, but build quality is as good as ever. It should be able to withstand a few bumps and scrapes too, as the matt finish hides damage much better than a glossy one would.

It might not have high-performance hardware inside, but the 5749 has more than enough power for almost all everyday tasks thanks to an Intel Core i3 processor. The dual-core i3-2330M runs at 2.2GHz and is paired with 4GB of RAM – this led to a score of 45 in our multimedia benchmarks. This performance doesn’t come at the expense of battery life, either – the 5749 managed an excellent six and a half hours in our light-use test.

One thing the 5749 can’t handle is playing games. It relies on the processor’s integrated graphics chip and shared system memory. Our Dirt 3 test was unplayable, managing a lowly 13fps. Film fans will still appreciate its ability to play high definition video though, either at 720p on the laptop or 1080p on an external display using the HDMI output.

In everyday use, the 5749 held up well to everything we could throw at it thanks to its spacious Chiclet-style keyboard. The flat keys can take a while to get used to, but you’ll soon be typing at speed – almost all the QWERTY keys are full-size, including the punctuation keys. There’s even a separate numeric keypad for data entry.

A large 16:9 touchpad is ideally matched to the widescreen display, letting us navigate the desktop in a single swipe and leaving plenty of room for dragging files and folders. We would have preferred two separate buttons rather than the rocker bar used here, as they wouldn’t have the large dead spot that we found ourselves pressing accidentally.

In spite of its glossy finish, which made it difficult to avoid reflections, image quality on the 15in screen was surprisingly good. Colours were vibrant and contrast was also good. With its 1,366×768 resolution, there’s room to work on two programs at once, but you’ll only be able to watch 720p videos natively. There’s a huge amount of screen tilt, which helps make up for the average vertical viewing angles.

As with virtually every laptop, the integrated speakers aren’t up to the task of playing loud music or movie audio. They’re fine for YouTube videos, but the lack of bass means you’ll want to use the 3.5mm audio jack to connect a pair of headphones. Other connections include three USB ports and a multi-format card reader.

Although it doesn’t lead the pack in terms of design or features, the Aspire 5749 still has almost everything else you need from an entry-level laptop. Great performance and battery life, a massive 750GB hard disk and a high quality screen make it a joy to use, and with a collect-and-return warranty, you can’t ask for more at this low price. It’s the obvious choice if you’re on a tight budget.