At what was termed its "inaugural next@acer" press event in New York City today, Acer America Corporation announced a wide selection of new products, spanning form factors from "1- to 100-inch," and including smartphones, tablets, convertible notebooks, computer monitors and LED projectors.
Most of these products will target the back-to-school timeframe this year, launching throughout the coming months. However, while a few are aimed specifically at education markets, most will have wider appeal, spanning productivity, entertainment and gaming activities. These new products are slated for "North American" availability. However, specifics of Canadian roll-out remain unconfirmed at this point. (We'll post an update as more info becomes available.)
Notebooks
Several new convertible laptops made their debut in New York.
The Aspire Switch 10 E (SW3-013) and Aspire Switch 10 (SW5-015) are billed as ‘2-in-1' designs, with a magnetic detachable keyboard for notebook or tablet operation. Both have 10.1-inch screens, Intel Atom quad-core processors, 2GB DDR3L memory, up to 64GB of eMMC storage, and optional hard drives up to 1TB.
The Aspire Switch 10 E (starting at US$279) offers 1280x800 resolution and weighs in at 630g in tablet mode, 1.28kg with keyboard and optional hard drive. It's rated for up to 12 hours of battery life, and will be available in 6 colors, with a grippable, scratch-resistant textile pattern on the top and bottom surfaces.
The Switch 10 (starting at US$399) has 1920x1200 resolution is styled in Gorilla Glass 3, matched to a silver-gray keyboard dock. It weighs 600g in tablet mode, 1.21kg with the keyboard dock and optional hard drive. The battery is rated for up to 7 hours of video playback. An Acer Active Pen will be available as an option.
Both the Switch 10 E and Switch 10 will be available in North America in July. All of Acer's new Windows-based products will ship with Windows 8.1 and qualify for a free Windows 10 upgrade.
The Aspire R 11 (starting at US$249) is a new 11-inch convertible with a 360-degree hinge that lets it switch between 4 configurations. It's rated for 8 hours of battery life. It will be available in blu or white, with a laser-etched fabric texture on top and bottom. It uses Pentium Processor and graphics, with up to 8GB of memory and up to 1TB hard drive.
The Aspire V 15 (starting at US$599) has aluminum cover with a ‘nano-imprint' texture, and a backlit keyboard. It uses 5th-generation Intel Core processors and Nvidia GeForce 940M graphics processors, with up to 16GB of memory and 2TB of hard drive storage, or a 1TB SSD. It's got Dolby Digital Plus audio and a DVD-RW drive.
The Aspire E Series (starting at US$379) comes in various colors and includes 14-, 15.6- and 17.3-inch models, with a laser-engraved textile-pattern finish on cover and underside. They use Intel processors, Nvidia GeForce 940M or AMD Radeon R8 and R6 graphics processors, and come with up to 16GB of memory and 2TB HDD or 1TB SSD.
The Aspire ES Series (starting at US$229) includes 5 screen sizes, from 11.6- to 17.3-inch. They use Intel Pentium/Celeron processors, with up to 8GB of memory and 1TB of hard drive storage, and optinoal DVD-RW drives.
The Acer Aspire V 15 will be available in North America in August; Aspire E and ES models will launch in July.
Acer has also added a new model to its Chromebook 15 line. The Chromebook 15 CB3-531 (US$199.99) features an anti-glare 15.6-inch display with 1366x768 resolution. Inside, there's an Intel Celeron N2830 dual-core processor and Intel HD graphics, with 16GB eMMC storage. It will be available in textured "granite gray." Weight is 2.0kg, and battery life is rated at 11.5 hours.
The new Chromebook launches in North America in July. Acer notes that According to the latest Gartner research, it is currently the world's leading Chromebook supplier, with over 36% of the market in 2014.
Tablets
Acer also launched two new Android tablets, particularly suited for use in education.
The Iconia Tab 10 (starting at US$299) is an Android 5.0 (Lollipop) tablet aimed primarily at education, with a durable 10.1-inch, 1920x1200 Gorilla Glass 4 display and a reinforced front frame, plus a textured anti-slip finish. Weight is 540g, and battery life is rated at 7.5 hours. Inside, there's an Intel Atom quad-core CPU, 2GB of DDR3 memory and 16, 32 or 64GB of storage. An SD card reader supports cards up to 64GB.
Reading Mode reduces blue-light emission by up to 60%, for reduced eye strain. Acer claims its Precision Plus technology has more densely-placed touch sensors, allowing students to write or draw more precisely. According to Acer, NFC technology should allow teachers to set up "a whole classroom of tablets" by simply tapping them together.
Acer is also including its Iconia Suite of creativity and touch tools, including EZ Note for note-taking, EZ Snap for screen capture, EZ wakeUp for gesture-based wake-up, and EZ Gadget for quick access to essential tools. North American availability is scheduled for May.
The Iconia One 8 B1-820 (starting at US$149) also includes Acer's Precision Plus technology, for increased fingertip or stylus accuracy. It's got an 8-inch, 1280x800 IPS display, quad-core Intel Atom processor, 16 or 32GB of storage and Android 5.0. Weight is 355g. It will be available in 10 colors, and features a tartan texture on the back for a "cloth-like" feel and secure grip.
As with the Iconia Tab 10, Acer's Iconia Suite of apps and Reading Mode are included. Battery life is rated at 8.5 hours. Availability is scheduled for July.
Gaming
One new monitor launched at the New York event, aimed chiefly at demanding PC gamers.
The euphoniously-named XR341CKA (starting at US$1,299) is a 34-inch curved monitor, featuring a 21:9 UltraWide IPS QHD display with 3440x1440 resolution, with 178-degree viewing angle. It's rated at 100% of the sRGB color gamut.
The new monitor incorporates Nvidia G-Sync technology. This allows games to dictate the monitor's refresh rate, for smooth display even when frame rates dip. A red indicator on the lower edge of the monitor changes intensity to indicate the current refresh rate. (Caveat: while Nvidia's proprietary G-Sync has a strong lead out of the gate, it may see stiff competition from open-standard technology included in the latest DisplayPort spec.)
The monitor stand allows tilt and vertical height adjustment. HDMI and DisplayPort inputs are included, as well as a USB 3.0 hub, and dual speakers with DTS sound. The ultra-narrow bezel will suit hard-core gamers looking to create multi-monitor setups. North American availability is scheduled for September.
Acer also mentioned that its gaming strategy would include a new family of devices under the Predator brand. These will feature "a distinct design language to capture the speed and excitement of PC gaming. The new Predator line will join Acer's existing Aspire V Nitro Series gaming notebooks.
Projectors
Acer introduced several new models to its projector lineup, but only one is noted as being available in North America at this point.
The K138ST (starting at US$999) is billed as "the world's first LED projector with an intelligent ambient light sensor." It's said to be "smaller than a sheet of letter-sized paper," and weighing just 0.75kg, but capable of projecting a 100-inch image from just 1.7m distance.
The K138ST has built-in DTS audio so it can be used anywhere without additional speakers, but it can also stream audio to external speakers via Bluetooth. Acer LumiSense+ technology is said to optimize image brightness and color saturation based on ambient lighting conditions. Availability is scheduled for June.
Two other models were announced, but are so far scheduled for availability only outside of North America.
The P5515 a full-HD model rated at up to 4,000 lumens, suitable for longer projection distances or bright environments such as meeting rooms.
The US5320W is an ultra-short-throw WXGA model that's designed for classroom or portable applications. It can project images up to 100-inch at just 0.5m from the screen.
All three new projectors feature Acer's latest image enhancement technologies, and support an optional wireless dongle supporting Miracast video streaming from Windows 8.1 or Android 4.2.2 and above. Acer's eDisplayPro technology allows up to 4 devices to display content on a single screen simultaneously. An optional WirelessHD kit allows lossless streaming at full HD 3D resolution.
Phones
Acer also announced in New York that it would be entering the US smartphone market for the first time, bringing its Liquid M220 to Microsoft Stores.
The Liquid M220 (US$79.99 MSRP) is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 processor running at up to 1.2GHz. It's got a 4-inch WVGA screen (480x800) with 233 pixels per inch. It's available in black or white, with a rear cover that features a silk texture. Battery life is rated at 3 hours of talk time. It will ship with Windows 8.1 and be eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 10 when that OS ships.
Acer notes that it has been selling phones in 55 countries around the world, and working with more than 20 telecommunications providers. No word at this point regarding similar moves into Canada.